Burlingame drug detox center focused on women’s issues coming to San Mateo County

Located in Burlingame, the new 24-hour First Chance Residential Detox center will offer women specialized treatment and supervision to safely transition through withdrawal from various substances. The site will feature four beds, a lounge room and television room for clients who can participate in the program anywhere from three days to three weeks. 

Beyond a safe place to lay their heads and regular meals, clients will receive routine check-ins by licensed counselors, access to therapy, medical supervision and connections to wrap around services after exiting the program. 

Though not a medical detox center with a doctor on site, Dr. Chistian O’Neil, a 10-year veteran of the addiction medicine field, will serve as the medical director of the First Chance Residential Detox site. As the director of 15 various drug diversion related programs, most smaller outpatient services, O’Neil said detox centers require the most diligence and medical attention. 

“Withdrawal programs have the highest turnover and people come in with multiple substances in their system and might go through withdrawal at the same time. That’s where the most care needs to be taken,” O’Neil said. 

While the site is not licensed to prescribe medication, O’Neil will review initial client screening forms, advise clients on their medicine intake prescribed by other physicians and provide medical consultations in case of falls, sexual health concerns and other matters. 

O’Neil said the center is also considering working with a street medicine team that can facilitate opioid replacement therapy, a supervised process in which medications are administered that relieve withdrawal symptoms and cravings. 

Counseling staff will also be required to check on each client every 30 minutes to ensure the detox process is progressing safely. Stall will also monitor for substance use in the facility, Malone said, noting all participants will be required to release their belongings to staff on entry. 

While clients could potentially smuggle substances into the facility or argue against releasing their items, Malone noted most are dedicated to achieving sobriety and will comply. 

“They’re going through the hoops to get here,” Malone said. “They want to be here. They want to try. They want to come down and maybe they’re just sick and need that time.” 

Will Little, program coordinator of the detox center, said staff would also work to create a welcoming community for clients, occasionally recreating with them and facilitating open dialogue. Similarly, Malone said the center has recruited empathetic employees with lived experiences, a sentiment echoed by O’Neil. 

“Just by definition, the people that work in detox centers are nonjudgement. They get it,” O’Neil said. 

Clarise Blanchard, StarVista’s clinical director, said the vision for a women’s detox clinic was conceived roughly three years ago when county officials including those in the county’s Behavioral Health and Recovery Services Department realized female clients were frequently relapsing at much higher rates than men after undergoing detox. 

Through a task force formed by BHRS and interviews with former clients, officials learned women were often turning back to substance abuse because gender specific traumas were going unaddressed in co-ed settings. 

Now years in the making, First Chance Residential Detox will provide women identifying people with the specialized care necessary to achieve stable recovery, Blanchard said. 

“It’s going to be very focused on women’s issues because there’s often a lot of trauma,” Blanchard said. “It’s designed that way with a lot of heart in it.”  

First Chance Residential Detox is slated to open in July but due to the temporary closure of Palm Avenue Detox in San Mateo, the center will initially focus on serving male clients, a population of higher demand for services in the county, Blanchard said. 

Once Palm Avenue reopens potentially by September, First Chance Residential Detox will begin taking female clients. Until then, Blanchard said female clients will be referred to established detox centers in Alameda or San Francisco. 

Looking long-term, Blanchard said the team would be “warmly open to expanding the program,” to ensure every woman struggling with addiction in the county can receive treatment and eventual placement into stable housing. 

In the meantime, Malone said staff are focused on getting the program off the ground and running smoothly, anticipating the center will face a long waitlist. Similarly, O’Neil called the center a “real asset” for struggling women, sharing hope clients will find the program safe. 

“A detox center is the first step back to normalcy,” O’Neil said. “I know it’s going to be a real asset to the community.” 

sierra@smdailyjournal.com 

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