By Mary Corrado
Editor
Noting that Uptown has high rates of substance abuse and homelessness, as well as one of the highest rates of HIV infection in the city, Haymarket Center has just opened an out-patient facility at 4750 N. Sheridan Rd. Through a grant from the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, five major programs will be provided. They are: Substance abuse treatment, prevention, and linkage; HIV/AIDS education, counseling and testing, and support; Support groups for individuals recovering from alcohol and club drug use; Additional support services, including parenting classes; and Driving Under the Influence (DUI) lectures and group.
Initial hours of operation are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Hours will be expanded as staff is trained and available.
"Transportation is available between the Sheridan Road and main campus facilities for clients who might be better served there," says Haymarket Clinical Director Dan Lustig, who is responsible for the program. "Haymarket Center's main site on Chicago's Near West Side has provided quality substance abuse treatment and services to individuals and families impacted by addictions. Programs there provide detoxification, residential care, recovery homes, and services for women with children, pregnant women, those facing incarceration, persons living with HIV, and mentally ill substance abusers. The agency's philosophy of addictions recognizes individuals' unique needs and abilities as a foundation for care."
According to Lustig, staff at the Uptown location will work with community leaders and other social service providers to best serve the needs of the entire area.
Among the first programs offered at Sheridan Road is a regular meeting of an institutional Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) group.
Two CTA bus routes stop outside the office and several other routes, along with a CTA Red Line station, are within a two-block walk.
Haymarket Center was founded in 1975 by Msgr. Ignatius McDermott and Dr. James West. It serves some 18,000 clients annually, in a score of residential and out-patient programs and settings, operating the largest alcohol and drug treatment and detoxification program in Chicago. Its detox and treatment programs are for both men and women. |
