By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
A facility opened in Sitka today to provide treatment and counseling for people suffering opioid addiction.
The SEARHC Opioid Treatment Center, located in Suite F at the Sitka Medical Center on Katlian Street, will offer comprehensive outpatient help to those struggling with drug addiction, said Dr. Corey Cox, medical director of the clinic.
“It’s for people who are misusing opiates – and that can look like a lot of different things,” Cox said. “They could be misusing heroin or fentanyl, they could be misusing pain medicine that they could be getting from a clinic or friends or somewhere else. A typical client could look a lot of different ways.”
Staff members of the new SEARHC opioid treatment center stand at the pharmacy window in the clinic at 700 Katlian Street today. Pictured are, from left, Stewart Pook, counselor; Sandra Baker, pharmacist; Susan Gaines, clinic manager; and Shelley Klein, access representative. The facility opened today to provide treatment and counseling for people suffering opioid addiction. (Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)
Starting today, appointments are being accepted for new patients, said Claudette Thor, clinic manager and program sponsor. Hours are 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Cox is a family medicine doctor and has completed a fellowship in addiction medicine. In addition to treating users, he works with friends and family of those struggling with opioid misuse – “people who have loved ones they are concerned about or who want to help develop a plan with their family,” Cox said.
Asked to describe a typical client, Cox said there are many different categories and a wide spectrum of abusers, including those who are un-housed with multiple substance disorders, and those who also may have social and psychiatric issues.
“And just someone you see at the grocery store, and you might think, ‘they just have a normal life,’” Cox said. “It’s just anyone struggling with opioid use... We’re set up to treat opiate use disorders but we would like to at least be able to provide people with information and referrals, and to get people set up for whatever questions they have and point them in the right direction.”
The term opioids covers “tons of drugs,” he said.
Prescribed opioids include hydrocodone, OxyContin, oxycodone, Dilaudid and Tramadol, and the common ones in the non-prescribed category are heroin and fentanyl.
“There is an opioid problem all over the United States,” Cox said. “I can’t think of any communities that I’ve seen that have been spared from the opioid epidemic. In Alaska it looks a little different than the rest of the United States because Alaska’s a different kind of place.”
But he said that in 2020 and 2021 Alaska had one of the fastest rising overdose rates in the U.S.
In 2022 it was “still pretty bad,” a lot of it attributed to fentanyl, Cox said. “It’s a lot more potent and people are a lot more likely to overdose from it, and that’s what we’re seeing here in Sitka,” he said.
Here and in the rest of the country, providers are seeing fentanyl gradually replacing heroin as people’s drug of choice, he said.
Clinic staff said they don’t know yet what the demand will be, but they look forward to helping a lot of Sitkans and their families.
Thor said the clinic takes referrals from providers, but also accepts walk-ins during office hours.
Those seeking help will be screened to see if they qualify for the services offered at the clinic, and if not they will be referred to an appropriate service in the community.
At the medical center office, services include medications for opioid use disorders (methadone and buprenorphine (Suboxone)) and counseling.
Thor said she encourages anyone with questions about services or seeking advice to call or stop by during office hours.
“We’re just there to help the community and we’re going to help as many people as we can, and we don’t want to turn anybody away. ... Hopefully we can save lives in the community,” she said.
For information or to make an appointment call 907-966-9797.
