Outpatient Medication Assisted Treatment Programs

Eligibility: The program provides services to men and women 18 years of age and older who are who have mental health issues or co-occurring (substance use and mental health) issues. Individuals who are unable to successfully engage in-group treatment because of mental health problems, or whose substance use is determined to be secondary to mental health problems are eligible for services.

How to Get Into Treatment: The program is available for immediate or direct admission. Calls can be made to the Foundation's Access Center to coordinate transfers from other programs or direct admissions by dialing (203) 781-4357. In addition, the Foundation's Access Center has walk-in hours (8:00 a.m.-12p.m., Monday, Wednesday, Thursday & 8:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m., Friday) for all individuals seeking admission to the Foundation’s programs and individuals are seen on a first come first serve basis during these hours. 

Individual’s seeking admission participate in a 1:1 evaluation with a Master’s trained and licensed clinician, lasting 30 minutes to 2 hours depending on the type of services that may be indicated. Upon completion of the evaluation and a review of the assessment tools. 

ChildWatch Services: The APT Foundation provides a safe environment, free-of-charge, for your child while you are at the Clinic receiving treatment or being evaluated for your behavioral healthcare needs. ChildWatch is available only while you are at the Clinic receiving services. Please be aware that we are not a licensed daycare/childcare facility. You must remain in the Clinic while your child is being watched. Children 8-weeks to 5-years of age are eligible to use services.

Payment: At the APT Foundation, money shouldn't be a barrier to your treatment. Medicaid, Managed Medicaid, Charter Oak, Medicare, and all private insurance carriers are accepted. If you are uninsured, the APT Foundation has a sliding scale payment policy that makes treatment affordable for everyone. 

Length of Program: Length of stay and frequency of contact is determined based on each individual’s unique needs.

Program Type: Outpatient Methadone Maintenance Treatment Program (MMT)

Program Capacity: The program operates without a census cap and does not maintain waiting lists. Individuals that are eligible for services are accepted immediately.

Program Locations:

Hours of Operation:

Medicating Hours:
Monday - Friday, 5:45am-12:30pm (Access/ ASC only)
Monday - Friday, 5:45am-3:30pm (Legion & Orchard only)
Saturday - 7:00 am-11:00am (Legion & Orchard)
Counseling Hours:
Monday - Friday, 8:30am-4:30pm 
Evening Groups offered Wednesday & Thursday from 4:00pm - 5:00 pm

Description of Services Offered: Individuals participating in methadone treatment receive daily methadone medication management and counseling services. Specialized services are available for women, HIV-infected individuals, and people with co-occurring substance abuse and mental illness. Individuals who stabilize in treatment are able to receive take home doses of methadone for self-administration, in accordance with Federal and State regulations.

Methadone must be taken on a daily basis so this usually involves coming to the treatment program every day and receiving the medication from a nurse at a dispensing window with other clients. Depending on what time of day you come, this could take between 5 and 30 minutes. 

The programs encourage individual choice and participation in open access treatment groups, psychiatric, medical and vocational services, as well as, opportunities to participate in ongoing clinical research programs. Clinical services are provided by staff that has specific training that includes motivational interviewing, cognitive behavioral therapy, trauma & recovery and co-occurring disorders. Group schedules are updated monthly to address the changing needs of our clients. Each month the programs offer open-access groups, which are open to all clients enrolled in treatment, that focus on the biology of addiction, co-occurring disorders, coping skills development, twelve steps, vocational education, spirituality and art therapy groups. In addition, the methadone clinics offer specific trauma, gender, age and Hispanic recovery groups to meet special population needs within its programs. 

All individuals enrolled in treatment participate in regular treatment planning and minimum monthly individual counseling. Treatment goals focus on all areas of an individual including substance use, mental health, medical, legal, employment, family, housing and basic needs, as well as community involvement goals. While developing their treatment plans each individual will identify their goals and objectives that are specific, measurable and time specific. Treatment plans also include transition planning, identification of community and social supports and stages of change to assess level of care to meet treatment needs. Clients in the program will have access to the APT Foundation’s vocational programming and be eligible to receive primary care services at Central Medical Unit

Some clients in treatment have a history of depression, anxiety, interpersonal/personality, or other mental health problems that benefit from additional services. All APT programs have a specially trained addiction psychiatry and psychology staff or trainees to provide psychiatric medications and psychotherapy. In addition to medication, treatment planning, and counseling all clients are asked to provide random urine samples and breathalyzer tests as clinically indicated, to assist in evaluating treatment progress. Urine toxicology screens are not supervised. However, a number of diversion safe guards are in place including temperature strips and testing of creatinine levels. 

Length of Program: Length of stay and frequency of contact is determined based on each individual’s unique needs. Individuals completing a formal treatment program are eligible to continue monthly counseling at the clinics. 

Program Type: Outpatient Substance Abuse Treatment Program Utilizing Buprenorphine (Suboxone®) in an unique collaboration with our Central Medical Unit (CMU)

Program Capacity: The program operates without a census cap and does not maintain waiting lists. Individuals that are eligible for services are accepted immediately.

Program Location:
1 Long Wharf Drive, Suite 10
New Haven, CT 06511

Hours of Operation: 5-days per week 
Medicating Hours: Monday - Friday, 5:35am-9:00am
Counseling Hours: Monday - Friday, 8:30am-4:30pm

Description of Services Offered: 
People who want to stop taking opioids can find it very difficult. At the right dose, and with psychosocial intervention (e.g., counseling) Buprenorphine (Suboxone®) can suppress opioid withdrawal symptoms and suppress cravings to help you continue treatment and avoid illicit opioid use. 

How to begin Buprenorphine (Suboxone®) Treatment: 
In unique collaboration with our Central Medical Unit (CMU), treatment utilizing Buprenorphine (Suboxone®) is as follows: 

1st Step: Walk-in to the Access Center at Long Wharf for an evaluation. 

2nd Step: You will be screened to determine if you an appropriate referral to outpatient treatment utilizing Buprenorphine (Suboxone®) and any other services that you may want or need as part of your treatment. 

3rd Step: You will be asked to come to the next available Orders Group. This group is held Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday at 2:00 pm. The Orders Group is designed to educate you about the risks and benefits of Buprenorphine (Suboxone®), orient you to the outpatient treatment program, complete a Day 1 Wellness Plan, and complete all appropriate consents and releases for outpatient treatment utilizing Buprenorphine (Suboxone®) as a support to your treatment for opioid dependence. The programs licensed medical doctor will either join this group or see you before you leave for the day. At that time, you will be given an induction prescription for Buprenorphine (Suboxone®). 

4th Step: You will be asked return to the Induction Group the following day at 9:00 am. You will also be asked not to use any opioids or take any Buprenorphine (Suboxone®) before you return for this group because you need to be in at least mild withdrawal before you can begin Buprenorphine (Suboxone®) induction. You will be instructed on how to take your medication. You will have the opportunity to ask questions, and a pill count may also be done at this time or a urine screen requested. You will then attend the programs Ambulatory Services Center/Access Center groups, which contain a core curriculum of the Biology of Opioid Addiction, Medication Assisted Therapy, HIV/HCV Prevention, and Overdose Prevention. You will then return to the Induction Group for re-evaluation and receive more medication if clinically indicated. You will receive instruction from the clinical staff on managing your medication through the evening. You will then leave the Ambulatory Services/Access Center for the day and you will be instructed to return at 9:00 am the following day with all your remaining medication. This same routine will be followed each day until are on a stable dose of Buprenorphine (Suboxone®). 

5th Step: Once you are medically stable (meaning not in withdrawal and not having intense cravings) and on a stable amount of medication you will be enrolled in the Refill Clinic. In this Clinic you will be evaluated individually or in group by the clinical team, receive counseling weekly for licensed/licensed eligible substance use disorder professional, you will be evaluated clinical staff and have your weekly prescription refilled. The evaluation will be to make sure that you are dose stable, doing well at home, encourage you to participate in appropriate treatment activities at the Ambulatory Services/Access Center and to address any other treatment needs you may have or are identified during this visit. As you become more stable the clinical team will assess you for increasing the length of time of your prescription up to 4 weeks which is the legal limit for Buprenorphine (Suboxone®). 

Length of Program: Length of stay and frequency of contact is determined based on each individual’s unique needs.