This program was established in 1989. The program is specifically designed to deal with clients who struggle with both mental illness and substance abuse. Most of the clients in the MICA (mentally ill chemical abuse) program are seriously mentally ill and many are involved with the justice system. Services provided include psycho-social assessment, psychiatric assessment, medication evaluation and monitoring, drug screening, counseling to support a drug-free lifestyle and for relapse prevention, education about substance abuse, case coordination, advocacy and referral to self-help groups in the community (including two Double Trouble and Relapse meetings held at the Better Future Self-Help Center each week). Emphasis is placed on involving families in treatment in order to support clients’ efforts to maintain a drug-free life. The program also provides assessment and counseling (individual and group) services to MICA inmates at the county Jail where most inmates are successfully linked with treatment and self-help services upon release.
