Pubdate: Tue, 27 Jun 2006
Source: Reno Gazette-Journal (NV)
Copyright: 2006 Reno Gazette-Journal
Contact: http://www.rgj.com/helpdesk/news/letter-to-editor.php
Website: http://www.rgj.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/363
Author:  Jaclyn O'Malley
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/women.htm (Women)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)

Series: Meth: Shattering Lives In Northern Nevada

A three-month Reno Gazette-Journal investigation found that 
methamphetamine's grip on the Truckee Meadows has become a stranglehold.

STEP 2 PROGRAM HELPS PREGNANT METH ADDICTS

There is only one place in Washoe County that provides residential 
and out-patient services for pregnant, drug-addicted women and mothers.

And 70 percent of the 160 women who went through Reno's Step 2 
program last year said methamphetamine was their drug of choice. 
About half have at least one child, 30 percent have two children, 12 
percent have three and 9 percent have four children.

Nevada's Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Abuse reports that 
methamphetamine was the most common drug used by pregnant women 
admitted into treatment centers across Nevada. The percentage of 
pregnant women in state treatment centers who listed meth as their 
primary drug rose from about 47 percent in 2001 to nearly 66 percent in 2005.

BADA has identified these women as a priority population, and 
specific funding has been dedicated to their treatment and prevention 
efforts. Step 2 is the only treatment agency in Northern Nevada that 
was awarded money from BADA to help pregnant drug users. It received 
$480,000, compared to WestCare Nevada in Clark County that received 
$500,000 and Sierra Recovery Center in South Lake Tahoe that was 
awarded $68,000.

"Our focus is on moms and pregnant women," said Becky Contos, the 
marketing director for the Step 2 program. "We want to give that 
infant the opportunity to be born clean."

But, like most treatment options in Washoe County, Step 2, a private 
non-profit organization, has a waiting list. The length varies. Step 
2 also has a sliding-fee scale, although women have to be at least 18 
to be in the program.

"All treatment providers really only serve 20 percent of the need," 
she said of local waiting lists for drug treatment centers.

Step 2 is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. Funding for the 
agency is mainly from the state alcohol and drug abuse bureau, but 
Contos said support from community agencies and private sources is 
vital. The agency also does fund-raisers, such as its popular golf tournament.

Most client referrals are from child protective services and the 
criminal justice system, she said. Many of these women have not had 
prenatal care.

Contos said the women have to be detoxified of drugs before they 
enter the program. Many are impoverished or homeless, and some are 
victims of domestic violence. The program lasts from 12 to 18 months.

Step 2 has around two dozen cottages for the women to live in with 
their children while they are getting sober.

Jennifer Brenn, chief clinical officer at Step 2, said many women use 
meth for energy and to lose weight. Children are often neglected, and 
many clients need parenting classes.

"We take women and give them tools and life skills to continue with 
their life," Contos said. "We deal with women who are at the stage 
where they can't care for their baby. To me, this is all about 
raising healthy children where there is an entire different 
generation of drug-using households."

Brenn said the meth epidemic touches many layers of the community.

"The biggest impacts are on families," she said, "but it impacts the 
welfare system, the Legislature, health care and crime."

The Step 2 clients range from women who have prostituted themselves 
for drugs to those arrested for trafficking meth and making meth in labs.

"Meth addicts engage in activities that are normally so against their 
value system," Brenn said. "They end up leaving their children in 
dangerous situations."

[Sidebar]

How can I enter the STEP 2 program?

Call (775) 787-9411 to schedule an assessment.

Admission priority is given to pregnant women, intravenous drug users 
and women with children. Referrals come from the criminal justice 
system, treatment providers, social services, emergency shelters, 
hospital emergency rooms, providers of indigent health care services, 
friends, family and self-referrals.

STEP 2 provides treatment, transitional housing, childcare, 
transportation and case management.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman