CARSON DETOX CENTER REOPENING TO HELP ALCOHOL, DRUG ABUSERS

Civil protective-custody calls to the Carson City Sheriff's Office have
nearly doubled in the last few years, and officials hope the reopening of
the community treatment center Tuesday will reduce the jail population.

"From its inception, the treatment center was a welcome influence in the
community," said Chief Deputy Scott Burau. "They're (inmates targeted by the
center) only put in jail if they're violent.

"We're not set up for counseling, and that's what these people need," he
said. "They have illnesses and issues to deal with."

Earlier this year, the Carson Treatment Center, which treats adults with
drug and alcohol problems, closed its doors due to management and
operational issues, said Carson City's City Manager John Berkich.

"They were a nonprofit board, which was outside of the city's jurisdiction,
so we weren't really close to that situation," Berkich said. "We had granted
them funds but that money was held up pending resolution of their issues."

The detox center reopened this past Tuesday under the wing of a separate
organization, the Community Counseling Center, headed by Mary Bryan.

The city now contracts with the center to provide detoxification treatment
and civil protective-custody services for the community.

"The city has been very supportive through all of this," Bryan said.

While the counseling center emphasizes long-term sobriety and anger
management counseling on an outpatient basis, the treatment or so-called
detox center is a short-term residential facility.

It is located only a block away from the counseling center, and its programs
are being administered for the time being by Bryan's deputy director, Steve
Burt.

"It's pretty convenient for us, but there are a lot of new
responsibilities," Bryan said. "Eventually, I'll need to be looking for
someone to permanently manage it or to replace Steve at the counseling
center."

Officials are pleased by the new arrangement.

"We're excited to have it back in operation," Berkich said. "It offers an
alternative to warehousing these people in jail or in hospitals, and at a
lower cost."

The detox center offers a sliding-scale payment plan and has a maximum
capacity of seven occupants.

There are four detox rooms with beds, two bathrooms, a kitchen area and a
meeting room, which is used a couple of times a day by groups such as
Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous, Bryan said.

"Lunch and dinner are provided by the jail and we provide juice, toast and
cereal," she said.

People are admitted to the center either by way of the Sheriff's Office or
they are brought in by concerned family members, she said. Four hours is the
shortest allowable stay and five days is the longest.

"During the detox period, we assess them (patients) and encourage them to
join a longer counseling program. They usually feel like crap and we tell
them, 'There's a reason you feel like crap, and you can either choose to do
something about it now or later,' " she said. "We see this as an opportunity
to motivate them."

The center is scheduled to hold an open house the first week in December.