Struggling with Addiction? Summa Health is Here to Help.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reports an estimated 46 million people in this country, aged 12 and older, suffer from substance use disorder. Unfortunately, that number continues to rise, as the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the crisis. 

Addiction is a chronic brain disease characterized by continued use of drugs or alcohol despite harmful consequences. Continued use of addictive substances triggers the release of chemicals, which alter the brain’s structure and how it works. These brain changes can make it almost impossible to stop drinking or using drugs on your own. 

If you or a loved one is struggling with addiction, it can be difficult to know where to turn for help. Fortunately, Summa Health is here to assist you on your recovery. 

Over the last 30 years, the addiction treatment and recovery field made significant progress in understanding the diseases of addiction and how to treat people who struggle.  

Summa Health’s Behavioral Health Institute provides leading-edge treatment for those suffering from substance use disorder. Because every person’s experience with substance use disorder is unique, our treatment plans are tailored to individual needs for optimal outcomes. 
Recovery is a multi-level process that requires a profound collaboration between the patient and a treatment team. 

Learn more about our addiction treatment options at all levels of care and how we can guide you on the road to a healthier, happier—and substance-free—life.   

Inpatient Detoxification Program

The practice of helping others take their first step toward addiction recovery has a rich history within Summa Health Behavioral Health Institute. In 1939, Sister M. Ignatia, C.S.A., of St. Thomas Hospital, and Dr. Bob Smith, co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, created the first hospital-based unit in the country dedicated to the treatment of alcoholism. 

This unit still exists today at Summa and offers a 14-bed, acute care inpatient unit that provides alcohol and chemical dependency detoxification for adults. Each room is private, and the unit contains two rooms respectively designed to host group activities and provide addiction-focused education.

First Step Addiction Treatment Program

Summa Health’s First Step addiction program initiates addiction treatment right in our Akron, Barberton, Green and Wadsworth Emergency Departments—24 hours a day, seven days a week. At the very first visit, providers treat withdrawal symptoms, ease cravings and provide on-site care coordination to ensure patients don’t leave our hospital without the next treatment option in place. 

Our program provides care and assistance for patients in need of addiction treatment for alcohol, benzodiazepines, opioids (heroin, fentanyl, kratom, oxycodone, etc.), as well as other substances, including: amphetamine, methamphetamine, crack, cocaine, marijuana and others.  

Care Coordination

Thanks to our partnership with the United Way of Summit County, Summa Health offers a full-time addiction care coordinator to quickly connect patients with appropriate providers and facilities, while still in the Emergency Department. 

Recovery Coach Connection

We provide patients with on-call “recovery coaches,” trained and certified peer-support specialists, many in recovery themselves, that support and guide patients to resources throughout the community and help remove barriers to sobriety. Services vary and can include from accompanying patients to appointments to reaching out to family members.

Service Coordination

We offer patients service coordinators to address all of a patient’s needs outside of treatment, including child care, food stability, housing and transportation. By removing barriers to staying in recovery, service coordination helps patients stay motivated and engaged in their treatment plan.

Addiction Medicine Intensive Outpatient Program

Summa Health also offers intensive outpatient programs to individuals that require a higher level of care, but do not require hospitalization to establish a foundation for long-term recovery. 

Our Addiction Medicine Intensive Outpatient Program is a group therapy treatment program for those with alcohol or substance use disorder diagnoses. Our team of multidisciplinary physicians and clinical counselors provide treatment recommendations based on the identified needs and goals of each patient to offer the best opportunity for maintaining a substance-free recovery. 

Our intensive outpatient programs are available at our Akron, Barberton and Hudson locations. Available days or evenings, the program runs three to four days a week, three hours a day, for an average of 16 to 20 sessions.

Medication Assisted Treatment (or MAT Clinic)

Summa Health believes that the best way to achieve a chemical-free lifestyle is to use all means available to maximize your chances for success. Medications play a huge role is this process. 
At Summa Health, addiction medicine is a leader in the region in terms of providing the cutting-edge, evidence-based medication treatment to people who struggle with addiction.
Our addiction medicine providers use multiple FDA-approved medications to address opioid-use disorder, such as Vivitrol or Buprenorphine, containing products like Suboxone, Subutex, Sublocade and Brixadi. Summa Health also works in close collaboration with other agencies that provide opioid replacement therapy with Methadone. 

For alcohol use disorder, addiction medicine at Summa Health uses FDA-approved medications, including Naltrexone, Vivitrol, Acamprosate and Disulfiram. All chemical substances that can cause addiction may also cause different forms of withdrawal symptoms. While all withdrawal symptoms do not require hospitalization, they can be very uncomfortable and jeopardize someone’s attempt to stay sober. Our providers can address symptoms, such as insomnia, restlessness, anxiety, depression, anhedonia, nausea and many others, with the help of appropriate medication.       

If you or your loved one needs an addiction medicine consultation, please call 330.379.8190 to schedule an appointment with one of our addiction medicine providers.

---