Treatment Center Addresses Teens Facing Addiction

November 30, 2022 Mirror

To view the interview please visit: https://www.kwch.com/2022/11/28/addiction-treatment-center-addresses-impact-fentanyl-crisis-teens/

WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) - The escalating impact of illicit fentanyl is felt across Kansas and it’s a situation impacting adolescents, as well as adults. Fentanyl often is mixed into other drugs or fake prescription pills. A trace amount can be deadly.

For teens, it can also be a challenge to find addiction treatment services. This week, an adolescent treatment facility is opening to meet some of the needs associated with the fentanyl crisis. Mirror, Inc will open an adolescent residential unit, serving teen males, ages 16 and 17. The adolescent treatment center, Reflections Recovery Center, opening Thursday, Nov. 30, will be the only one in Wichita and just the second in the state with the other facility in Kansas City, Kan.

As the recovery center director for Mirror Inc’s Reflections Recovery Center, Dana VanWinkle is among those leading the effort to help teens struggling through addiction.

“I’m so excited that we have families that are already hearing about us, like, ‘hey, my son needs help,’” VanWinkle said.

VanWinkle said the recover center in Wichita is long overdue.

“(I’ve) been in the field 21 years and there has definitely been a need this entire time,” she said. “And now with opioids, it’s bigger than anything we’ve ever seen.”

Teen overdose deaths have more than doubled since 2010, data from the CDC shows. Illicit fentanyl is the main culprit. This is even as adolescent illicit drug use has slightly decreased over that same stretch of time.

“As the availability of the substance becomes greater, then the use of the substance becomes greater,” said Mirror, Inc Vie President for Treatment Services Jason Greever.

The availability of residential treatment is something that’s been missing for teens in the Wichita area.

With the new facility in Wichita and what will soon be available for teens in need of addiction treatment, he said the community is going from 0 beds to 12 as the state expands from eight beds to 20.

In Wichita, Reflections Recovery Center will have treatment services, counseling that will include the family and time to meet educational needs. The center will also have therapists that are dual-certified to address substance abuse and mental health.

“Adolescents have some unique needs,” Greever said. “There’s a lot of family support that’s needed. There’s a lot of environmental support that’s needed, so, it’s really a holistic approach to treatment that has to take place.”

VanWinkle said Reflections Recovery Center wants to provide teens with the tools needed for recovery and save lives from potential fentanyl overdoses.

“I think the adolescents have been kind of pushing through sometimes and it’s our goal to bring them in and love them and show them that there’s a different way to live,” she said.

A stay at the adolescent residential facility in Wichita is expected to last about 28 days, but that will depend on each teen. One thing VanWinkle would like to see is a unit open for female teens. She encourages anyone dealing with addiction either personally or through someone they know, to reach out as services to help are available.