The Basics
The Veterans Administration Boston Healthcare System offers a variety of residential and outpatient substance abuse programs to US Veterans at facilities throughout the city. Its Causeway Street Community Based Outpatient Clinic, located in the city’s North End neighborhood, provides primary care, pharmacy services and outpatient mental health and substance abuse treatment, including Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) for opioid addiction.
The Causeway Street clinic has been in operation for over 10 years and offers a free shuttle service to the VA’s expansive Jamaica Plain campus, which has residential treatment and a clinic dedicated to the treatment of PTSD.
Treatment and Staff
Clients undergo a full bio-psycho-social assessment and are then given a treatment plan that includes group and individual therapy. Once they’ve begun substance abuse treatment, clients with significant co-occurring disorders may also receive additional support from the clinic’s mental health team, which may include therapy and medication.
Outpatient treatment is offered at the standard outpatient level of care, with most clients attending group therapy once or twice a week and individual therapy as-needed. The duration of treatment depends on a client’s needs and progress, and many often stay in the program for several years.
Groups use CBT, Motivational Interviewing (MI) and Acceptance-Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help clients learn relapse prevention and how to create boundaries, develop coping skills and handle triggers. Clients are encouraged to attend 12-step or other peer support meetings, such as SMART Recovery, in addition to treatment groups.
Groups are led by Master’s level therapists and psychologists, and clients with co-occurring disorders may also have appointments with the clinic’s psychiatrists. Clients in need of MAT meet with a therapist and physician to decide on a course of treatment with methadone or Suboxone, which are administered by the clinic’s pharmacy. Methadone clients must also attend dedicated methadone support groups, and clients on both tracks of MAT can attend outpatient treatment groups while receiving their doses. Methadone clients are eligible to apply for take-home doses after 90 days of successful treatment.
Extras
Causeway helps clients in need of PTSD treatment who are entering the Jamaica Plain PTSD treatment program. The Causeway clinic plans to also offer Seeking Safety and DBT groups later this year.
In Summary
VA Boston Healthcare System’s Causeway Community Based Outpatient Clinic provides Boston’s veterans with a convenient one-stop location for primary care, mental health and long-term outpatient substance abuse treatment. With a MAT department and coordination with VA Boston’s residential and PTSD programs, Causeway Community’s outpatient program can help veterans create a supportive and effective long-term recovery strategy.
VA Boston Healthcare System
Causeway Street Community Based Outpatient Clinic
251 Causeway St
Boston, MA 02114
VA Boston Healthcare System: Causeway Cost: Sliding Scale for US Veterans. Reach VA Boston Healthcare System: Causeway by phone at (617) 248-1075. Find VA Boston Healthcare System on Facebook and Twitter
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