The Starting Point, Haddon Township, New Jersey

Overview of The Starting Point

The Starting Point is a behavioral healthcare center located in Haddon Township, in Camden County, New Jersey. Although it started as a rehabilitation center for alcohol addiction, now it acts as a facility that provides treatment for substance abuse and mental health-related issues. Their primary aim is to provide people from all walks of life with access to resources that will help them in their struggles with sobriety and enable them to grow.

The treatment programs offered to clients at this facility are specialized to meet the individual needs of each client. These programs are rooted in 12 step philosophy and in-depth study and understanding of the big book is encouraged at group discussion sessions. Furthermore, evidence-based practices and therapies also play a big role in the treatment process. The facility and the dedicated staff associated with it, attempts to carry out the reintegration of their clients into society successfully.

The treatment process undergone by clients here is also more free-flowing than the usual strict structures followed at other rehabilitation centers. The group sessions comprise a series of lectures that people are free to attend. Funds for the running and management of the center is raised more through donations from those attending sessions than through charging high costs for treatment.

Accommodation and Food

The Starting Point does not offer its clients an inpatient course and consequently, they do not have provisions to accommodate their clients on site. This facility also does not offer food in the form of meals. Clients only spend about a few hours every day here and so are expected to arrange their own food, though refreshments are sometimes served.

The treatment facility and official quarters are located in a brick building that houses the offices of around 40 counselors and practitioners. This allows the center to match clients with the practitioner whose specialization is best equipped to deal with their needs. Solo therapy sessions are carried out in these offices, while there are bigger halls where group sessions take place.

Treatment Options at The Starting Point

This facility provides treatment to a wide variety of people affected by alcohol or substance abuse as well as co-occurring mental disorders. These range from therapy for the victims themselves to counseling sessions for children or other family members of the victims. While inpatient programs are not available, clients can attend any of the myriad number of meetings, lectures, and therapy sessions scheduled every day of the week.
Some treatment options include the following:

• Treatment for mental health and trauma-related issues
• Treatment for addiction to alcohol or drugs

Therapy Choices at The Starting Point

The various therapies offered at this facility comprise both traditional evidence-based techniques as well as holistic approaches.
Some of the therapy choices available here are as follows:

• Group therapy
• Individual counseling
• 12 step meetings
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
• Dialectic Behavioral Therapy
• AA/NA meetings
• Emotions Anonymous meetings
• Refugees recovery sessions
• Yoga
• Tai Chi

Payment Options and Insurances

The Starting Point is a nonprofit organization that is run on mostly on the donations from various clients. While most of their meetings are free, they charge an initial intake fee of $25 and further treatment costs vary case to case based on the insurance coverage of individual clients. They accept payment for their services through both self-pay and through insurances. The insurance providers accepted here include the following:

• Aetna
• UnitedHealthCare
• Blue Cross Blue Shield
• UniCare
• Cigna
• QualCare
• Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield
• Humana
• Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey
• Medicaid
• WellPoint

The Starting Point Amenities

This facility acts as a facilitator enabling substance abuse and mental health patients to seek help and find the best local practitioner to initiate the process. To this effect, they have a referral system that oversees the referral of about 400 patients each week. This process constitutes the matching of clients with mental health practitioners or certified addiction specialists.

This non-profit organization has an inclusive approach that ensures that no prospective patients, irrespective of race or economic background, are deprived of the help they need. They go the distance in empowering their clients and their family members. This is achieved by arranging for weekly sessions even for the children and family members of the victims. Not only does this ensure the formation of healthy family units, but also helps facilitate the victim’s recovery process.

Staff

The staff at The Starting Point comprises a team of Counselors. Their ranks include Licensed Professional Counselors (LPCs), Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselors(LADCs), Licensed Clinical Social Workers(LCSWs), Licensed Social Workers (LSWs), Masters Social Workers (MSWs), etc. some of the important members and their respective roles are as follows: