Hope and Healing Clinic describes low‑barrier opioid treatment, mobile unit and expanded services in Tumwater
Loading...
Summary
At the Oct. 21 Tumwater City Council meeting, Hannah Klimak of the Chehalis Tribes Hope and Healing Clinic outlined the clinic’s services in Tumwater, its mobile unit in downtown Olympia, expanded behavioral‑health staffing and transportation offerings. The presentation emphasized low‑barrier access, Medicaid billing and harm‑reduction services.
Hannah Klimak, outreach coordinator for the Chehalis Tribes Hope and Healing Clinic, told the Tumwater City Council on Oct. 21 that the clinic at 9474 Lathrop Industrial Drive in Tumwater provides low‑barrier opioid treatment, harm‑reduction services and expanding behavioral‑health care.
The clinic, which Klimak said has been open “just about 18 months,” is “predominantly an opioid treatment program” but is broadening services to people with other substance use disorders, she said. Klimak described medication options — methadone, buprenorphine and naltrexone (including Vivitrol) — as well as counseling, peer navigation, housing referrals and naloxone distribution for members. “Medication for opioid use disorder … is cutting the risk of overdose in half,” Klimak said.
Klimak said the clinic serves an approximately 30‑mile radius, focusing on Thurston and surrounding counties including Lewis County and tribal communities. She said the clinic accepts Medicaid and some private insurance and has financial navigators to help prospective members enroll. Clinic hours are 6:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and about 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Saturdays, and dosing is available later in the day than at many opioid treatment programs; Klimak noted dosing hours extend until about 4:00 p.m.
She highlighted a mobile unit stationed in downtown Olympia at 319 Seventh Avenue, which has operated Monday through Friday and is “very close to maxing out our services” there after a short period, according to Klimak. The mobile unit, she said, includes safety staff and can transport people to the main clinic if needed. Klimak also described a transportation program that provides rides from encampments or other locations to the clinic.
Council members who toured the clinic earlier praised its flexible layout and security approach. Council member Dahlhoff and others asked about funding; Klimak said the clinic is a billable operation and derives a large portion of revenue from Medicaid billing.
Klimak closed by noting an expansion of behavioral‑health services and an incoming psychiatric prescriber. She accepted an invitation from the council to answer questions and was presented with a proclamation by Mayor Debbie Sullivan.
The presentation was informational; no council action on the clinic was taken.
Ending: The clinic’s presentation underscored an emphasis on low‑barrier access, mobile outreach and Medicaid billing as mechanisms to connect people with opioid‑use disorder treatment in the Tumwater area.
