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Recovering from substance abuse requires a strong foundation, both literally and figuratively. Dan Dowiak delivers the bedrock for this process as corporate director of real estate at Pinnacle Treatment Centers, a provider of substance abuse disorder treatment services.
As a department of one, he manages a wide scope of responsibilities and is especially involved with the process of site selection such as site visits, lease negotiations, and getting the site approved. He also handles market surveys and day-to-day construction.
“I am not a clinician or a counselor,” he told Blueprint Magazine in 2020. “What I try to do is provide our staff and our patients with a safe and comfortable place to work and heal with the opportunity to be integrated, valued members of their community.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Pinnacle Treatment Centers’ crucial services only became more necessary. According to the CDC, the 12 months leading up to May 2020 saw the highest number of overdose deaths ever recorded in a year-long period. The recent numbers suggest that while numbers had been climbing in 2019, they accelerated during the pandemic.
With the help of Dowiak, Pinnacle Treatment Centers has been able to navigate these murky waters and stay on-track. Just this year, it opened three new opioid treatment facility centers in Ohio and one in New Jersey, where there have been increases in drug-related deaths.
“I am not a clinician or a counselor. What I try to do is provide our staff and our patients with a safe and comfortable place to work and heal with the opportunity to be integrated, valued members of their community.”
All four centers are Medicaid-friendly and provide medication-assisted treatment (MAT), a combination of medication and therapy designed to treat substance use disorders. Pinnacle Treatment Centers’ locations offer Methadone, Suboxone, and Vivitrol along with different therapy options.Dowiak has been working on increasing Pinnacle Treatment Centers footprint in MAT clinics. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA), MAT has been shown to improve patient survival, increase retention in treatment, decrease illicit opiate use and other criminal activity, and increase patients’ ability to gain and maintain employment. The method is clinically driven to meet each patient’s individual need, and the centers Dowiak oversees take that into account.
The company also broke ground in April 2021 on a new recovery facility in Martinsville, Indiana. Phase One is a 64-bed drug and alcohol addiction residential treatment center. The facility will offer a range of services including medically monitored detoxification/withdrawal management, residential treatment, intensive outpatient programs with recovery homes, and outpatient opioid addiction treatment.
“Recovery Works Martinsville is probably the first comprehensive addiction treatment campus in the state, and it might even be the first in the country,” said Joseph Pritchard, CEO of Pinnacle Treatment Centers in a company press release. “This campus will truly allow us to meet people where they’re willing to accept care. Whatever we can do with whatever services we can provide to help start the process to get you the care you need to save your life, we’ll do it.”
According to the company’s press release, the 38,000-square-foot residential facility will accept Medicaid and feature living spaces, individual and group therapy rooms, several therapeutic areas for recreation, a full-service kitchen, a nursing station, and more.
Pinnacle Treatment Centers opened in 2006 with a mission “to remove all barriers to recovery and transform individuals, families, and communities with treatment that works.” It encourages healing and recovery in all levels: mind, body, and spirit. This model of care meets patients where they are. The company offers services in urban, suburban, and rural areas and lets the patient themselves determine how, when, and where they would like to accept treatment.
Opioid-treatment programs are considered essential services, and Pinnacle Treatment Centers was able to implement telehealth and telephonic services during the pandemic to allow the flexibility necessary for its patients to continue their recovering.
Pinnacle’s commitment to meeting every patient’s needs continues. It offers a general outpatient program, aftercare support, and office-based treatment to ensure anyone who walks through its doors finds a path to recovery. For his part, Dowiak continues to find happiness in his work: making sure those doors are in the best spot possible and able to facilitate healing.
