CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. -- The Iron Bridge Recovery Center, a new 80-bed in-patient treatment facility, is expected to open in Chesterfield in the coming days.
During a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday, CEO Paige Bottom said the center would help not only people with substance use disorder but also those struggling with mental health issues.
"Ninety percent of the people that we see that have a substance use disorder, also have a co-occurring mental health disorder, anxiety, depression, bipolar, something that complicates the issue of addiction," Bottom, who herself has been in recovery for more than 35 years, said. "This is my heart's work. It is so important to me to show people that recovery is possible. And part of that is facilities like this."
Dr. Ja'Nay Crippen-Derry, Director of Nursing, said once an Iron Bridge Recovery Center patient completes detox, they would move to the residential side for what is usually a 30-day stay.
"The ultimate goal for them is to come in, get their lives together, get back on track, and be an active member of the community," Crippen-Derry said.
County leaders like Chesterfield Commonwealth's Attorney Stacey Davenport and Dr. Mantovani Gay, who helps run the Chesterfield County jail's HARP program, praised the project.
Gay said up to half the people in jail, which is located less than two miles from the center, have substance use issues.
"If you just release somebody and they can't get to a treatment facility, they now have someplace to go and not their dealer and fall right back into their old habits," Gay said.
Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors Chair Kevin Carroll said he hoped the county's community services board would be able to work with the facility.
"We have opioid abatement money that's coming from the state that we'll be allocating in the future for different reasons," Carroll said. "And certainly, recovery houses like this are one of those authorized uses for that money."
Chesterfield County staff added that "81 people in Chesterfield that lost their lives from a drug poisoning event in 2022."
"There was a 36.7% decrease in the total number of fatal overdose deaths in Chesterfield between 2021 and 2022. We attribute this to our naloxone saturation efforts in Chesterfield," added county public information officer J. Elias O’Neal. "So far in 2023, there were 25 deaths during the first quarter, which is the most current information we have to date."
When it comes to what Virginia as a whole is experiencing -- fatal drug overdoses continue to be the leading unnatural cause of death since 2013. While the overall deaths dropped in 2022 -- one quarter into 2023, officials predict a slight increase this year -- from 2,619 to 2,657.
Chesterfield County's Mental Health and Support Services Department said there are currently no other residential facilities in Chesterfield County like Iron Bridge and "This includes ASAM Level 3.1 – low intensity residential, ASAM Level 3.5 – High Intensity Residential, or ASAM Level 3.7 – Withdrawal Management."
Sam Davis, a drug and alcohol interventionist for 12 years who came to the open house, said a place like this is crucial to helping people in recovery.
"It's critical. It's a safe place to establish some stabilization in their life, to help them understand that when they get out that there's much more work to be done," said Davis. "There hasn't been a true inpatient residential treatment program in this area. And this is the one"
Bottom said they're just waiting on the final license from the state to come through sometime this week. In the meantime, she said to anyone looking for help -- don't give up.
"It is possible and recovery is amazing," she said. "It's not easy, right? But together, we can make it happen."
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