Banyan Philadelphia Announces Proud Partnership with Hope One Mobile Response Unit Atlantic County

Atlantic County, NJ—Banyan Treatment Center is proud to announce a new partnership with the Hope One mobile response unit in Atlantic County, New Jersey. The Hope One initiative will provide resources to those struggling with addiction throughout the county, and is spearheaded by Sheriff Eric Scheffler. The goal of the project is to reduce opioid access, abuse and the occurrence of overdose in an area that has been ravaged by the epidemic. In 2016, there have been a reported 171 drug-related overdose deaths in Atlantic County, New Jersey. The mobile response unit will help hundreds of people with access to emergency services and first responders who will be supplied with Narcan, which is an injectable used to reverse opioid depression, including respiratory depression due to an overdose.

Banyan will be sponsoring services performed by the mobile unit, in addition to providing addiction treatment placement and referral for individuals who are seeking help, as Hope One’s primary private treatment provider. Services offered by the unit include Narcan training for family and friends of those suffering from opioid addiction. Kits of the opioid overdose reversal medication will be given out free of charge to those who are in need. Trained specialists will be on staff, maintaining communication with multiple organizations to track treatment bed availability in real time, so that no one in need of help is turned away.

“Our goal is to provide direct assistance to people regardless of their socioeconomic status or condition,” stated Timothy Reed, Chief Warrant Officer at the Atlantic County Sheriff’s Office, “The intent of the ‘Hope One’ mobile unit is to remove barriers for people in need of services and eliminate the stigma associated with seeking help. The mobile unit will be a caring, non-judgmental environment for any resident of Atlantic County seeking safety and treatment guidance and support,” Reed continued.

Banyan Treatment Center operates a facility in Langhorne, Pennsylvania, just one hour outside of Atlantic County, NJ. The area holds special significance to Banyan Community Outreach Coordinator Andrew Simpson. “I was born and raised in Atlantic County, NJ. Seeing my county rise to the number one county in New Jersey for opiate overdoses is unacceptable. I fully support the Sheriff’s Department and their altruistic endeavor to bring mental health and substance abuse treatment resources to the people of Atlantic County,” says Simpson.

The initiative is modeled after the highly successful Hope One unit in Morris County, NJ, and is set to launch early this summer.