Unmet Community Need

Storm King Case Management, a program of Community Health Initiatives, began providing services across Garfield County in March 2009. SKCM is beginning to fill significant gaps in basic care for persons whose lives are seriously affected by alcohol and other forms of substance abuse. It was estimated, for example, that prior to program initiation, more than 70% of individuals discharged from the county’s only detoxification program did not have the personal resources or community support to find needed treatment and resolve other psychosocial or economic obstacles that were serious impediments to their achieving sobriety. 90% of patients in emergency rooms whose medical treatment was driven by substance abuse were unprepared to initiate a recovery program. Nor were medical staffs in a position to follow patients after discharge. Similarly high percentages were seen for people with a chronic history of substance abuse who were being released from incarceration. Caseworkers in the Department of Human Services had very limited access to expert consultation on substance abuse treatment essential for managing their clients, sometimes forcing them to develop less than optimal intervention plans. During its brief startup, SKCM has made progress both with assisting individual clients in achieving sobriety and with addressing the “system issues”, working with professionals and their organizations, that can improve access to needed care.

Program Vision, Mission, and Goals

• SKCM’s vision is that all residents of Garfield County will live lives free of the adverse effects of alcohol misuse and the use of illicit drugs.
• SKCM’s mission is to assist individuals and families towards recovery through individualized case management services and to enhance the abilities of professionals in organizations across Garfield County to recognize and intervene effectively to support affected residents’ substance abuse recovery.
• SKCM’s program goals at this time are to provide substance abuse clinical case management services, develop strong professional relationships with stakeholders in helping people affected by substance abuse, and in developing a financial foundation that will sustain effective services.

Case Management Philosophy

SKCM positions itself between law enforcement and courts, which may use client violations of law to force client compliance with orders and the approach taken by medical, social service, and other community service providers who may recommend treatment to clients, but limit their engagement concerning substance abuse issues. The SKCM philosophy falls in between these two. It makes a very active, persistent outreach to clients, serving them where they are in recovery and addressing their strengths where these will lead to advancing their sobriety. This philosophy respects individuals while at the same time recognizes that substance abuse may have limited their judgment on what is in their best interest concerning drug and alcohol use. SKCM is concerned with the whole person. For clients its primary goals are decreasing substance use and increasing their level of recovery, but goals also include improved psychosocial functioning, e.g., parenting, employment, and self-care, and becoming more self-sufficient of external resources on which they have in the past relied.

Case Management Program Service Components

• Information Services:   Staff members take calls from individuals, primary care providers, employers, attorneys, law enforcement officers, educators and other community members who seek information about substance abuse treatment.
• Intervention Services:  Clients who are in crisis because of substance abuse or related problems are provided brief services that help them to stabilize their immediate situation and find appropriate resources.
• Assessment and Treatment Planning:  For case managed clients, their substance abuse status is assessed in depth to determine the most appropriate course of treatment. Psychosocial needs are also evaluated and referral made to obtain resources necessary to support recovery, e.g., mental health counseling, medication, employment, temporary housing and other basic needs. A treatment plan is developed that identifies short-term goals (first 3 months) for stabilizing the person, and long-term treatment goals (3-6 months longer) that will support sobriety.
• Treatment Referral and Monitoring:  Clients are referred to the most intensive available service appropriate to their needs. Thereafter, they receive case management counseling that supports treatment engagement and aftercare to sustain sobriety gains.

All components involve SKCM staff communicating as appropriate with other service providers e.g., other caseworkers, District Attorney, courts, mental health provider, employers, attorneys, and family.

Program Staff Credentials and Roles
Program Director, Ken Eielson BS, CAC III. holds a Bachelors degree in counseling and a Colorado Addictions Counselor Certification. Prior to assuming this position, for 17 years at Colorado West Mental Health he managed programs including The Recovery Center (Detox and the Men’s TLC Program), The HIV Early Intervention Program, The Grand Junction DUI Program, Smoking Interventions in the Glenwood Springs Recovery Center and the mental health crisis unit formerly located in Glenwood Springs. The SKCM Director manages day-to-day operations including transportation of intoxicants, hospital bedside interventions, substance abuse evaluations, and networking with clinicians in the social services fields, homeless organizations and the 9th Judicial Probation Department in Garfield County.

Clinical Case Manager, Leonard Beaulieu, M.Ed. has spent the past 25 years working to promote the personal, academic, and psychosocial development of people from varied backgrounds in a variety of clinical and educational settings. Over the course of these years, he has developed clinical skills in the field of alcoholism and drug addiction intervention and treatment. Lenny has also developed professional, administrative, and managerial skills in outdoor adventure substance abuse treatment, intensive outpatient treatment, and substance abuse education.

Carmen Lacino, M.A., LAC, Clinical Supervisor, is the Clinical Supervisor of Storm King service staff. Carmen has broad experience with mental health and dual diagnosis complications of substance abuse.

Contact Information:

Storm King Case Management
2001 Blake Avenue, Suite IA
Glenwood Springs,  Colorado 81601
Phone: 970-945-8669
Email: 
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it