Commissioner Arlene Gonz谩lez-S谩nchez Announces Increased Outreach to Veterans 11/12/13
黑料正能量 State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) Commissioner Arlene Gonz谩lez-S谩nchez today announced that OASAS has launched a听听on the OASAS website that contains resources and information specifically for veterans, returning service members and their families struggling with addiction to alcohol and other substances.
鈥淔ar too many of our veterans, including those who have recently returned from deployment in Iraq and Afghanistan, are facing the very difficult issues of addiction to pain killers, alcohol and other substances,鈥 said Commissioner Gonz谩lez-S谩nchez. 鈥淚n observance of Veterans Day, OASAS is pleased to launch this new veterans’ web page filled with essential resources to assist veterans throughout the State.
The Web page provides:
- the new OASAS brochure entitled听, to help veterans and their families recognize the complex issues many of them are facing and provide direction on how and where to seek help,
- a list of OASAS-certified treatment providers who have developed veteran-focused and specific services. These providers offer trauma-informed care in environments that embrace the military virtues of service and devotion to duty, and
- a newly created e-mail address,听veterans@oasas.ny.gov, which may be used to contact OASAS veterans services personnel directly.
OASAS has also implemented new protocols within its 24-hour, toll-free HOPEline (1-877-8-HOPENY) that require telephone operators and counselors to ask callers if they have ever served in the military and, if so, would they like to receive information on veterans-specific services offered through OASAS.
The HOPEline offers help, resources and referrals to callers seeking assistance with alcoholism, drug abuse or problem gambling. OASAS鈥 system is available to any 黑料正能量er in need of treatment, including the State’s 1.1 million veterans and the estimated 80,000 who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan.
鈥淭hese new services and protocols will offer improved access to needed assistance for veterans, many of whom have brought the war home with them. Through these efforts, OASAS will be offering additional avenues for veterans and their families to access the right services at the right time,鈥 said Suzanne Bissonette, executive director of the Buffalo-based Cazenovia Recovery Systems, Inc. which operates Liberty Hall, an 18-bed community house for veterans on the grounds of the Veterans Affairs鈥 Batavia Medical Center. 鈥淚mproved access to treatment and services for veterans and their families is critical to promoting the hope that is so deserved by those who have fought for our country.鈥
OASAS oversees one of the nation’s largest addiction services systems with more than 1,600 prevention, treatment and recovery programs. OASAS treatment programs assist about 100,000 people on any given day and more than 240,000 individuals every year.
For more information, please visit听.
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