Posted August 09, 2022
Catholic Charities Matt Talbot for Women (MTFW) program was founded in 1999 with the intention of helping women who are struggling with alcohol and/or other drug dependencies.
After 23 years, MTFW is moving to a new location to continue to serve the current residents and new women who want to start their road to recovery.
“The Program Leadership team envisioned this as an opportunity to gain efficiencies and also position the program for future services that will enhance our client’s recovery journey,” Chief Program Officer Fredy Robles said.
During the worst of the COVID-19 outbreak, this gave the Matt Talbot staff a chance to update one of the units in the men’s program since the number of clients during the time was being delayed.
“The COVID-19 pandemic brought us a ‘blessing in disguise.’ We moved to renovate the space while our census had decreased as a result of the delay in program referrals coming through our local court systems. [The] renovation made sense and we had to seize the opportunity the pandemic had created,” Robles said.
This move will benefit all involved with MTFW. Clients will be surrounded by nature while staying at the facility and the staff from both the men’s and women’s programs will be closer together to collaborate on treatment plans.
“While not being exactly the same, both programs will operate more similarly than in the past. We will be able to swap staff between units as needed,” Senior Director of Treatment Prevention Recovery Services Spencer Kline said. “This new unit will be an ideal home for Matt Talbot for Women due to the interior changes and lovely outside nature setting.”
Not only will clients be in a different setting but there are also plans for adding new programs to help in the recovery process.
“Moving the women to a larger setting allows us to expand services to include mindfulness practices, structured recreation, and art therapy in our onsite art studio. We are excited to be able to offer them to the women who will undoubtedly benefit from them” Director of Residential Treatment Services Jennifer Tulli said.
Preparation for adding outpatient services, substance use disorder (SUD) and mental health services, and more are scheduled to start in 2023.
“We will be adding SUD and mental health services that are outpatient and intensive such as full diagnostic assessments, counseling, case management, Intensive Outpatient (IOP) Services, and hopefully Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) for clients wanting to remain with a doctor for getting their medications while working to remain sober while living in the community,” Kline said.
Every Matt Talbot client is treated with respect and dignity during their recovery journey and with the move to Parma, Kline hopes that this will enhance their experience.
“Not all treatment programs are the same. We all do things differently. We believe the Matt Talbot programs stand out and are more effective for the way we treat the people that come to us for help. Everyone is treated with respect and dignity and empowered to do the best they can for their own life and recovery” Kline said.
For more information about Matt Talbot and Catholic Charities’ other recovery programs click the button below.
Part of the Catholic Diocese of Cleveland
