CleanSlate Blog

Twenty-eight years after opioid deaths began to rise in tandem with sharp increases in prescriptions for pain treatment, healthcare leaders have long since reached important conclusions about what’s working in stemming the tide of overdose deaths, and what isn’t. The challenge has been to align the actions of individuals, organizations and legislators with the evidence-based data on how to successfully treat opioid use disorder (OUD).

Top on the list of underutilized success stories is medication-assisted treatment (MAT), which combines behavioral therapy with one of three FDA-approved medications: buprenorphine, naltrexone or methadone. A study published last August by the medical journal Annals of Internal Medicine was the first in the U.S. to compare how these three medications are used and how they impact mortality. The conclusions were startlingly clear: overdose survivors who went on to be treated with medication reduced their risk of death by 40 to 60 percent.

Despite the well-documented success rate of MAT, the Annals of Internal Medicine study found that only 30 percent of overdose survivors are given any one of the three FDA-approved medications for their disease.

Salem, WI - CleanSlate Centers, a national leader in outpatient addiction medicine, has opened a new medication-assisted treatment center in Salem, Wisconsin. The center, which will treat patients suffering from opioid or alcohol addiction, is located at 24804 75th St., within the offices of Oakwood Clinical Associates, a behavioral consulting clinic which will serve as a partner with CleanSlate in the Salem community.

“We’re grateful to join hands with Oakwood Clinical Associates to battle the opioid epidemic and the disease of addiction in Kenosha County,” said Dana Thomson, Center Manager for CleanSlate in Salem. “Our partnership with Oakwood Clinical Associates will increase the diversity of care which we can offer patients as they fight to save their lives.”

New Albany, IN - CleanSlate Centers, a national leader in outpatient addiction medicine, continues its expansion in Indiana with the opening of a medication-assisted treatment center in New Albany. Located at 811 Northgate Blvd., theNew Albany center opened its doors to patients last week.

CleanSlate’s decision to open a center in the southern part of Indiana was driven by the outpouring of patients who were traveling across state lines to receive treatment at the company’s center in Louisville, Kentucky. The New Albany center sits on the opposite side of the Ohio River from CleanSlate’s Louisville center.

When people start treatment for a drug or alcohol addiction, they begin to regain control of themselves and their lives. Their newfound mental clarity is an important development in recovery, but it comes with a catch. With a clear view of the wreckage their disease has caused all around them, patients can feel a debilitating sense of shame and guilt.

We see this every day in our work with patients. At CleanSlate, physicians and staff practice medication-assisted treatment (MAT) to help patients suffering from opioid or alcohol addiction. Patients make appointments at one of our outpatient centers, and their experience is similar to a routine visit to any doctor’s office. After beginning treatment with medications such as buprenorphine (Suboxone) or naltrexone (Vivitrol) to ward off cravings and prevent relapse, many of our patients report feeling “normal,” like their former selves, sometimes in a remarkably short amount of time.

But for most patients, medication is only one component of recovery.

Plainfield, IN - CleanSlate Centers, a national leader in outpatient addiction medicine, is opening its third Indianapolis treatment center for opioid and alcohol addictions, marking the company’s 14th outpatient center in the state. Located at 2455 E. Main St, Suite 194, in the West Indianapolis area of Plainfield, the new center opens its doors to patients tomorrow.

The West Indianapolis location will address the needs of an underserved area suffering from a shortage of treatment providers, especially providers of medication-assisted treatment (MAT). The company participates in-network with most Medicaid and commercial providers in the state of Indiana so that patients can be treated with minimal or no financial burden.

Columbus, OH - CleanSlate Centers, a national leader in medication-assisted treatment for opioid and alcohol addictions, has opened an outpatient center in the Westside area of Columbus, Ohio, serving the Hilltop and surrounding neighborhoods. The new physician-led center, located at 4488 W. Broad Street, Suite 3, began treating patients yesterday.

As CleanSlate staff has reached out to community leaders in the Westside area, they have heard a consensus about the urgent need for responsible medication-assisted treatment in this hard-hit neighborhood.

Greenfield, WI - With the launch of its new center for medication-assisted treatment in Greenfield, CleanSlate Centers, a national leader in addiction medicine, continues to bring desperately needed treatment for opioid and alcohol addictions to the state of Wisconsin. Located at 4848 S. 76th Street, Suite 210, close to the surrounding communities of Greendale, Hales Corners, West Allis and Franklin, CleanSlate’s new outpatient center opens its doors to patients on December 12th.

This marks CleanSlate’s fifth center in Wisconsin and its third center in Milwaukee County, which also include CleanSlate centers in Milwaukee and Glendale. The company opened the center in Southwestern Milwaukee County to increase access to care for local patients who were driving long distances to receive treatment at other CleanSlate centers.

Wilkes-Barre, PA - CleanSlate Centers, a national leader in outpatient addiction medicine, has expanded its busy treatment center in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, by relocating to a larger location, at 100 North Wilkes-Barre Blvd., Suite 103. The move is a response to the high demand for medication-assisted treatment services by CleanSlate, which has been a fixture in Wilkes-Barre for the past three years.

CleanSlate’s Wilkes-Barre center, which was declared by Governor Wolf to be a Pennsylvania Center of Excellence, is the second busiest of CleanSlate’s 52 outpatient treatment centers throughout the country. With more than 800 patients under its care and 2000 patient visits each month, CleanSlate Wilkes-Barre was bursting at the seams of its former location.

As the opioid epidemic has escalated across the country, law enforcement has found itself on the frontlines of a humanitarian disaster. Until recently, officers were never trained and departments were never built to handle the volume, severity and complexity of emergencies connected to a single ongoing crisis like the one that is currently besieging American communities from coast to coast.  

In a medium-size police department, budgets are tight, manpower is limited, and an average officer is already overwhelmed by the amount of calls for service daily. When you add to this officer’s daily shift a half-dozen assists to overdose victims, where officers are called to administer the overdose-reversing drug Narcan (naloxone), an officer’s job becomes substantially more difficult.

Kokomo, IN -CleanSlate Centers, a national leader in outpatient addiction medicine, continues its expansion of medication-assisted treatment centers for addiction throughout Indiana with its newest center in Kokomo, located at 3728 S. Reed Road. The company now operates twelve treatment centers for opioid and alcohol addictions in the state of Indiana and 51 centers across the country.

“We’re eager to bring CleanSlate’s life-saving services to the people of Kokomo and reduce all barriers to medication-assisted treatment, including the barrier of cost,” said Anthony Belott, Chief Development Officer for CleanSlate. “CleanSlate participates in-network with most Medicaid and commercial providers in the state of Indiana so that patients can be treated with minimal or no financial burden.”