Access to Recovery (ATR) Success Celebrated at Community Event in Boston
AHP organized an event in Boston on March 20, 2018, to celebrate the success of the Access to Recovery (ATR) program, honoring both those who benefit from the program and those who fund and run it. ATR changes lives for the better by providing recovery supports like vouchers for basic services and a unique job training program. The program has helped many who previously struggled with incarceration and other recovery barriers live sober lives and contribute to their communities, and it has also helped reduce overdose rates among those served.
Approximately 60 people attended the ATR celebration, held at the New England Center for Arts & Technology (NECAT), which is one of ATR’s job training programs in Boston that focuses on culinary arts. Participants included the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MA DPH), Bureau of Substance Addiction Services (BSAS) officials, ATR coordinators (who match program recipients to services), service providers, and program participants.
Three ATR participants from the job training programs spoke, describing how ATR has changed their lives for the better and how much they are indebted to ATR and the job training programs that have turned their lives around. The audience found their stories powerful and compelling.
Karen Pressman, Director of the Planning and Development Unit of BSAS, was honored for her contributions to the field of addictions, including her efforts to bring ATR to Massachusetts and to ensure its continuance under the umbrella of the State Targeted Response to the Opioid Epidemic (STR) grant.
ATR has helped close to 18,000 individuals, with significant outcomes in abstaining from drugs and alcohol, avoiding arrests and involvement with the criminal justice system, securing employment and stable housing, and avoiding relapse and overdose. The future is very bright for ATR, and it’s important to make sure that this program continues and ideally expands its reach across Massachusetts.
Rebecca Starr, ATR Project Director at AHP
About ATR
Since 2010, a grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to MA DPH BSAS has funded ATR, and AHP has implemented the program. ATR is designed to support the recovery of people with substance use disorders (SUDs), giving them the dignity of self-sufficiency and hope for a future in recovery. Clients are offered recovery support services and can select vouchers to secure the services they think will help them most, including care coordination, basic critical needs support (clothing, IDs), public transportation passes, health and mental health supports, and employment training.
ATR is being implemented in the Springfield and Boston areas, and it recently expanded to Worcester and New Bedford when the program was rolled into the Commonwealth’s STR grant.
About Us
Advocates for Human Potential, Inc. (AHP) creates powerful solutions to improve health and human services systems. By partnering with the federal government, states, municipalities, healthcare systems, and nonprofits, we help people experiencing the greatest disadvantages lead full and productive lives. We are national leaders in training and technical assistance, research and evaluation, publishing, and dedicated consulting. On issues from workforce development to mental health, substance use disorders to housing and homelessness, we help our clients enhance behavioral health care through systems change. AHP was founded nearly 40 years ago to develop solutions for some of the biggest social infrastructure challenges across the nation. Our company has offices in metro Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Find out more at www.ahpnet.com.
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