Bridges Healthcare’s Mobile Addiction Treatment Team service, known as MATT’s Van, has extended its hours and locations to offer individuals experiencing opioid use dependency fast access to treatment and a better chance for recovery.
MATT’s Van is now available by phone or in person Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The locations and hours are as follows:
– Mondays, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Beth-El Center, 90 New Haven Ave. in Milford.
– Tuesdays, 10 a.m. to noon at La Quinta Inn, 400 Sargent Dr. in New Haven, and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on the West Haven Green.
– Wednesdays, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Saving Rock Parkade, 228 Captain Thomas Blvd. in West Haven, and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on the West Haven Green.
Thursdays, 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. on the New Haven Green, and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Fairbank Apartments, 355 Ferry St. in New Haven.
Peer phone support at 203-494-5811 is available all other times, Monday through Friday.
MATT’s Van is designed to reduce the number of opioid deaths in the Greater New Haven area by improving access to medication assisted treatment for opioid dependency.
The mobile unit and team address several barriers to clinic-based care for individuals who are on the verge or ready to engage in treatment. Clients are seen immediately by a recovery coach and prescriber and prescriptions for Suboxone (buprenorphine and naloxone) are written immediately on the van with same-day unobserved (at-home) Suboxone inductions. The van is parked in locations of high need and in many cases eliminates the need to schedule an appointment and travel to a clinic. Treatment is provided regardless of insurance.
According to Dr. Tara Kerner, Bridges medical director who initiated the mobile unit and continues to provide services, “A regimen of medication, primarily buprenorphine, combined with therapy, case management and mutual support groups has proven to be the most effective model in treating opioid use disorder.”
According to Bridges, the van is the first of its kind in Connecticut and has been successful, achieving a 75 percent kept intake appointment rate and a 72 percent retention in treatment rate. Funding is provided by the state Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services and the Connecticut Realtors Foundation.