Satilla Community Services Mental Hlth and Substance Abuse Servs
(912) 389-4188x6213
www.satilla.csb.state.ga.us
1005 Shirley Avenue
Douglas GA 31533

Rehab and Insurance Services

Mix of mental health and substance abuse services
Services Provided: Substance abuse treatment, Buprenorphine Services
Type of Care: Outpatient
Special Programs/Groups: Persons with co-occurring mental and substance abuse disorders

The Matrix Model

The Matrix Model is a framework for engaging stimulant abusers of methamphetamine and cocaine in treatment and helping patients achieve abstinence. Patients learn about issues critical to addiction and relapse, receive direction and support from a trained therapist, become familiar with self help programs under go urine testing to monitor drug use. The therapist functions simultaneously as teacher and coach, fostering a positive, encouraging relationship with the patient and using that relationship to reinforce positive behavior change. The interaction between the therapist and the patient is authentic and direct but not confrontational or parental. Therapists conduct treatment sessions in a way that promotes the self esteem, dignity and self worth of the patient. A positive relationship between patient and therapist is critical to patient retention. Treatment materials draw heavily on other tested treatment approaches and include elements of relapse prevention, family and group therapies, drug education and self help participation. Detailed treatment manuals contain worksheets for individual sessions. Other components of the Matrix Model include family education groups, early recovery skills groups, relapse prevention groups, combined sessions, urine tests, 12-step programs, relapse analysis and social support groups. A number of studies demonstrate that participants in recovery using the Matrix Model show statistically significant reductions in drug and alcohol usage, improvements in psychological indicators and reduced risky sexual behaviors associated with HIV transmission.

Complementary Medicine

Many Americans use complementary and alternative medicine in pursuit of health and wellbeing. Defining complementary medicine is difficult, because the field is very broad and constantly changing. Complementary medicine is a group of diverse medical and health care systems, practices and products that physicians and the public do not generally consider a part of conventional medicine. Conventional medicine is medicine as practiced by holders of MD medical degrees, as medical doctors and DO as doctors of osteopathy degrees and by allied health professionals, such as physical therapists, psychologists and registered nurses. The boundaries between complementary medicine and conventional medicine are not absolute and specific complementary medicine practices may become widely accepted.
Most alternative medicines that Americans use are complementary. Alternative medicine refers to complementary medicine that replaces conventional medicine. Integrative medicine refers to a practice that combines both conventional and complementary medicine treatments that show safety and effectiveness.