Gateway Rehab Unveils New Westmoreland County Facility

PITTSBURGH, Sept. 21, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Gateway Rehab today unveiled its new inpatient, drug and alcohol treatment facility at Excela Health's Frick Hospital in Mt. Pleasant, Pa. during an open house for invited guests.

The new drug and alcohol treatment facility, a separate operation from that of Excela Health and Frick Hospital, will have beds for 16 patients in a combination of detox and rehab.  Additionally, the agreement with Excela Health permits the opportunity for 16 additional beds for a total of 32.

At the open house, Gateway Rehab President and CEO Paul Bacharach said that the new facility would bring much needed addiction treatment to an area of Western Pennsylvania hit especially hard by the current heroin/opioid epidemic. 

"Fatal drug overdoses increased by 43 percent in Westmoreland County last year, said Bacharach.  "Now, instead of traveling to other counties to receive inpatient care, people who want to receive treatment but remain close to their families can do so right here in Westmoreland County."

The Westmoreland Drug and Alcohol Commission Inc. provided $615,000 in start-up funding for the new facility via state Department of Human Services' HealthChoices program reinvestment dollars, made available through the state's Medicaid behavioral health services program.

"This is a much needed program in Westmoreland County," said Colleen Hughes, executive director, Westmoreland Drug and Alcohol Commission.  "We currently do not offer the full continuum of care in the county, but with a residential detox and rehab center linked with Gateway Rehab's outpatient program located in Greensburg, we are one step closer to that goal."

The new treatment facility will be staffed and or supervised by a medical doctor, nurses and other clinical staff and will begin accepting patients in October. 

Gateway Rehab is a private, not-for-profit organization with the mission of helping all affected by addictive diseases to become healthy in body, mind and spirit. A positive force and leading resource for effective education, prevention, research and treatment of substance use disorders, Gateway Rehab serves nearly 1,700 adults and youth daily through four divisions at locations throughout Western Pennsylvania and Ohio. For more information about Gateway Rehab, visit www.gatewayrehab.org.

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SOURCE Gateway Rehab

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