Michelle Thorne

NORTHWEST INTEGRATED HEALTH

Northwest Integrated Health Opioid addiction is a chronic disease – similar to type 2 diabetes. The best way to manage a chronic disease is by life style modifications, behavioral therapy and support from family and friends. Medications are only for disease stabilization and harm reduction; they cannot cure a chronic disease. The treatment of opioid addiction has been fragmented. Majority of "clinics" and "centers" offer an agency centered treatment; there are "Methadone clinics", "Suboxone clinics" , "Detox centers" and "abstinence only – treatment centers". In comparison, other medical and/or psychiatric chronic-diseases are managed by specialists – in a patient centered treatment model. Diabetes treatment for example does not have "Insulin clinics" or "Metformin clinics"; there are no "diabetic coma centers" or "non-Insulin – nursing homes". Addiction has been stigmatized for centuries; and so, has its treatment. At Northwest Integrated Health we offer a true patient-centered, comprehensive, integrated treatment model. Our board-certified addiction specialists treat addiction as a medical specialty. We offer the full spectrum of treatment options to our patients. When a patient contacts one of our treatment centers; they get assessed by a physician and a chemical dependency professional (CDP). Evidence-based treatment options are discussed with the patient; and a treatment plan which offers the best outcomes is devised.