Continuing its mission of caring for the region’s most vulnerable neighbors, Catholic Medical Center (CMC) has opened a new location at the Manchester Recovery and Treatment Center. Wilson Street Integrated Health is a service of the Health Care for the Homeless Program of Manchester, a collaboration between CMC and the Manchester Health Department. The new practice offers primary care, social work, counseling and medication assisted treatment to those who receive other services at the Center, as well as clients in the area.
Conversion of the former Hoitt’s Furniture, on the corner of Valley and Wilson Streets, began several years ago when Hope for New Hampshire Recovery, a peer-based substance use recovery program, moved into the building. Since then, The Willows Substance Use Treatment Center, a program of Families in Transition-New Horizons, set up housing and services for women and women with children. The Mental Health Center of Greater Manchester’s Mobile Crisis Response Team is also housed within the building.
“Wilson Street Integrated Health is the missing component for this facility to offer complete, wrap around services to support clients on their recovery journey,” said CMC Executive Director of Community Health & Mission Tim Soucy, MPH. “Together, we are removing barriers for our clients to be able to take care of themselves and be well.”
At a ribbon cutting ceremony on August 15, Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig said, “With the new Wilson Street Integrated Health right in the heart of the Manchester Recovery and Treatment Center, those in need of support and assistance can get the help they need before, during and after treatment for addiction. I want to thank and recognize CMC for taking a leadership role in addressing complex issues like the opioid epidemic.”
CMC President & CEO Joseph Pepe, MD, noted, “The concept of this whole building is revolutionary—the social, medical, behavioral, and structural support people need to find and sustain recovery, offered without judgment, here under one roof.”
“We’re thrilled to be co-located with CMC’s Health Care for the Homeless at the Manchester Recovery and Treatment Center on Wilson Street,” said Families in Transition Vice President, Clinical & Support Services Megan Shea, LICSW, MLADC. “Working collaboratively to help address the personal health issues connected to substance use and mental health disorders will improve health outcomes for the individuals and families served by this partnership in the Manchester area.”
Renovation of the clinic space was made possible in part by several generous donations, including grants from the Ann De Nicola Trust, Cogswell Benevolent Trust, Dobles Foundation, Norwin S. & Elizabeth N. Bean Foundation, and a major gift from Dr. William and Mrs. Jane Goodman. The clinic was designed by Stone River Architects and construction led by Chapman Construction.
Photo: CMC celebrates the opening of Wilson Street Integrated Health with a ceremonial ribbon cutting with (left to right) Senator Lou D’Allesandro, Tim Soucy, MPH, Mrs. Jane Goodman, Dr. William Goodman, Dr. Joseph Pepe and Mayor Joyce Craig.