The Basics
OASAS Residential Services: Maxwell House was founded in 1991 in Oneida, New York, a small city near Syracuse. The house is licensed by the New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) and run by parent company Liberty Resources, a large healthcare organization. Maxwell House offers sober living to adult men in the Oneida and Syracuse area who have completed a residential treatment program or are at least 28 days sober.
Accommodations and Amenities
Maxwell House operates out of a Victorian-style brick building in a residential neighborhood in Oneida. There are a total of 18 beds with two to three beds per room. Clients initially reside in one of the house’s triple rooms, and then transition into double rooms as they progress through the program. The house is relatively large, and has a living room with a TV and couches, a dining room and a kitchen. The house has on-site laundry and the organization provides clients with their own soap and washing supplies. Maxwell House also provides fresh bedding and linens for each client.
Residents prepare their own breakfasts and lunches from food provided by Maxwell House. The organization has a cooking staff who prepares dinner every day for clients. Clients with severe food allergies and restrictions have the option of preparing their own dinner, but must first present Maxwell’s staff with doctor proof of their allergies.
Rules and Regulations
Maxwell House requires clients have at least 28 days of sobriety. Those who are interested in becoming residents must fill out an application, which can be picked up on-site. After turning in their application, clients must then present a bio-psycho-social evaluation to be admitted. The house usually has a waiting list that averages about two weeks. The sober living program usually lasts six months to a year depending on the client’s needs and goals. They must also be in an outside outpatient treatment program that they aim to complete while living at Maxwell House.
For the first 30 days, clients are only allowed to leave the house for up to three hours at a time and must check back in with their counselors every three hours. After 30 days, this amount of time increases to four hours. Maxwell House operates a curfew of 9:30 pm on weeks and weekends for all clients. However, this curfew may be earlier for clients with probation or legal issues. Clients are not allowed to have laptops during their time at Maxwell House. The house also prohibits clients from having cell phones for the initial 30 days but does have an on-site rotary phone that clients can use during this time.
The house hosts a 12-step meeting every Sunday evening and has a staff member who drives clients to and from one other meeting per week. Counselors strongly encourage clients to attend a lot of outside 12-step meetings while in the program. Clients are required to complete chores that help with the upkeep of the house. There are mandatory house meetings a couple times a week to help address any roommate or house issues. Also, the house requires clients to all attend dinner together from 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm every day.
The staff at Maxwell House requires clients to apply for federal financial assistance and has an agreement with the department of Social Services to cover the cost of each client’s stay. This government assistance allows clients to not need a job while in the program so they may focus entirely on their recovery. Each client is assigned to a counselor who monitors then during their time at Maxwell House. All of Maxwell House’s counselors are licensed CASACs. Maxwell House is not equipped to offer dual diagnosis support, so it must refer clients with co-occurring disorders to outside local mental health providers.
Extras
When clients finish the program, they have the option of transitioning into OASAS’ Next Step program, a sober living environment similar to that of Maxwell House but with more independence given to the residents. Residents in these programs are required to find a job and become fully independent before moving out.
Although Maxwell House does not have an on-site gym, clients are provided with access to the local YMCA. Maxwell House has a group recreational outing at least once a month with all of the men in the house. Some past outings have included bowling, hiking trips and going to the state fair.
In Summary
OASAS Residential Services: Maxwell House offers an affordable sober living environment for adult men. The small size of the house and assigning of a counselor to each client allows for clients to receive a substantial amount of individual attention while in the program. The government funding makes it so that those from all economic backgrounds are able to establish a solid foundation for recovery at Maxwell House.
OASAS Residential Services: Maxwell House
218 Liberty St
Oneida, NY 13421
OASAS Residential Services: Maxwell House Cost: Government funding. Reach OASAS Residential Services: Maxwell House by phone at (315) 363-8345 or by email. Find OASAS Residential Services: Maxwell House on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn
Do you have a complaint or review OASAS Residential Services: Maxwell House? Use the comments area below to add your OASAS Residential Services: Maxwell House review.
Sponsored DISCLAIMER: This is a paid advertisement for California Behavioral Health, LLC, a CA licensed substance abuse treatment provider and not a service provided by The Fix. Calls to this number are answered by CBH, free and without obligation to the consumer. No one who answers the call receives a fee based upon the consumer’s choice to enter treatment. For additional info on other treatment providers and options visit www.samhsa.gov.
