KENAI — The operators of a residential drug treatment facility inside a Soldotna hospital are seeking funds from the state to become central Kenai Peninsula’s first medical detox center.
Coordinators from Serenity House have applied for a state grant to fund a new detox facility. Although Central Peninsula Hospital operates the drug treatment facility, the area still doesn’t have a designated facility where people can go to safely detox from drug use.
The hospital’s emergency room accepts patients who are detoxing from drugs, which can delay care for others seeking medical help.
“We looked at the data, and there’s no way to fill this need without just starting to do it,” Serenity House intake coordinator Shari Conner told the Peninsula Clarion. “The hospital is not really equipped to do it. Detoxing in a hospital just isn’t really appropriate.”
If the state grant gets approved, Conner said the new detox center would be located near the hospital’s campus in downtown Soldotna. Part of the grant would fund education and access to other services for people struggling with addiction.
The group’s application for funding comes as opioid addiction on the Kenai Peninsula and in the rest of Alaska has become a significant public health issue.
The Kenai Peninsula Borough established the Healthcare Task Force, which met for more than a year to discuss how to improve the peninsula’s health care system. The task force submitted a list of recommendations to borough officials in October calling on them to “explore the feasibility” of supporting a detox facility.
“The task force recognizes that substance abuse and mental health are significant public health issues in the community, and understands that failure to address these issues leads to increase costs to the community, both through the health care and criminal justice systems,” the recommendations state.
Conner said Serenity House will continue working to establish a detox facility even if the state doesn’t fund the project. The group has already received support from other medical providers in the community and is seeking out support from other sources.
“We’re really hopeful,” Conner said. “We had a lot of support letters, and we’re hopeful.”
