SUBSTANCE ABUSE CARE FACILITY OPENS

Until now, addicts and alcoholics in Santa Barbara had to leave the county
to get highly structured residential treatment for substance abuse. But that
changed last week, with the quiet opening of Cottage Residential Center at
2838 State St.

The facility offers a low-cost alternative to detoxification and treatment
at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital's emergency room, where the most severe
cases of substance abuse have been tended to.

At the Residential Center, the two-to four-week, full-time program provides
medical oversight and is more intensive than the settings at sober living
houses, where people typically work while in recovery.

Located in what was formerly a motel, the center is licensed for 14
residents. It will offer one-on-one, group and family therapy, 12 step
meetings and education. It costs approximately $300 per day -- about half
the cost of hospitalization -- and is covered by most insurance, but not by
Medi-Cal or Medicare, Cottage spokeswoman Janet O'Neill said. Clients must
be at least 18 to be admitted.

Entry into the program can be made through a physician or self referral
through the emergency room at the hospital. Three clients have entered the
program since it opened last week.

"This is a full program, with intensive work from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.," said
Dr. Carlos Sluzki, director of the hospital's Center for Psychiatry and
Behavioral Healthcare. "Clients learn to manage their cravings and to
recognize the self-inflicted tricks they play" that keep them from staying
sober, he said. "Through work with the family, we will help them break the
relationship stalemates that may contribute to addictive behavior," he noted.

Loved ones are encouraged to participate in the program, he said, noting
that it adds to the success of recovering clients.

In 1998, roughly 2,000 of the 25,000 people admitted to the Santa Barbara
Cottage Hospital emergency room suffered from acute drug, alcohol or
psychiatric problems, or some combination of the three, O'Neill said. Only a
small percentage of them required intensive medical treatment, and most
would have benefited from a residential program if it had existed, she said.

Since the center is small, neighbors have not objected to its presence in
the neighborhood. The hospital organized a community meeting about it and no
one came, O'Neill said. The center is located near State and Alamar, a
neighborhood with a mix of commercial, residential and medical uses.

Once people graduate from the center, they can make the transition into a
variety of programs, such as outpatient treatment or community halfway
houses, Sluzki said. The next step depends on the clients and their
particular needs.

"It's one day at a time," Sluzki said. "Sobriety is a long-term undertaking."

People who want to know more about the center's programs can call 687-6681.