Services United also operated Un Paso Adelante, a 10-bed transitional home for men who had completed initial treatment at Joshua House. But the transitional home’s county funding was pulled in July and the center, located in a residential neighborhood, is now for sale.Licensed through March 2008 by the state Alcohol and Drug Programs office, Joshua House clients included those ordered to undergo drug treatment under Prop. 36 guidelines, which allow court-ordered treatment rather than jail time for nonviolent offenders convicted of first- or second-time drug possession charges. Joshua House is monitored by the state Alcohol and Drug Programs office, which reviews protocols, operations and menus for those undergoing treatment.Although the county clients left Joshua House on about February 16, “We kept on our private clients and we’re still operating” and expect to continue to do so, said Juarez. But, she noted, the need for county funded treatment remains: “At that point in their life,” clients do not always have the funds to pay for treatment. “We were able to implement real diverse types of treatment. Many cannot get treatment because of a lack of money and language barriers” that are not a problem for Services United. “...It is the people who are suffering.”Joshua House is just one of Services United’s programs: “We are a Medi-Cal provider, we have other contracts.... Joshua House is just a part of our programs, but one that was important.”Juarez said she hopes the county reevaluates the situation. “I just wish they would reconsider their position and return the funding for the program... there’s a real need,” with limited beds for men - there are more facilities for women in Ventura County, said Juarez - in residential treatment programs.
Joshua House: Residential drug treatment program loses county clients
March 07, 2007
Santa Paula News
Joshua House, the Main Street residential facility for drug treatment, has lost its county patients.
By Peggy KellySanta Paula TimesJoshua House, the Main Street residential facility for drug treatment, has lost its county patients. In recent weeks an area resident used public comment to ask the City Council’s help to keep the facility operational.On January 17, Ventura County Behavior Health officials notified Santa Paula-based Santa Clara Valley Alcoholism Services United Inc. that Joshua House would no longer be contracted for eight of the 15 facility’s beds. The county contract was $323,000 annually. According to the county, the decision was prompted by a series of client complaints including lack of access to telephones in the event of nighttime emergencies, rodents, dirty conditions and a lack of food for clients.According to Services United Clinical Director Norma Juarez, the allegations are not true and the facility remains in good standing with the state licensing board. Although there was an incidence of rodents at the facility, the problem was addressed and cleared. The accusation centered on nighttime telephone access for emergencies was also false, noted Juarez.Opened as Joshua House in 2000, the building located at the corner of East Main and 4th streets in years past had been a convalescent care facility. Decades ago the building housed a small hospital, primarily used to deliver babies and minor surgical procedures.Initial local opposition to creating Joshua House included its proximity to Isbell Middle School - located about a block away - but once opened the center maintained a low-profile.
