MADISON RECOVERS: University Health Services stresses a collaborative approach

Note: Over the next six weeks, we'll be looking at Madison's recovery community, including the increase in opiate abuse in Dane County, local treatment options for those in recovery, and growing initiatives aimed at combatting substance abuse in and around Madison. The first installment looked at the growing problem of opiate use in Madison. The second installment looked at efforts to build a community for recovery.

UW-Madison is known for its research facilities, its lakeside view and of course, its party scene, but what about its recovery community? As movements like Young People in Recovery and Collegiate Recovery develop around the nation, recovery support in a university environment is becoming an important draw for many students.

In the land of the Brewers and the de facto home of Korbel, alcohol is a particularly defining issue, deeply rooted in the Wisconsin’s culture. In order to most effectively impact public perception and response to alcohol abuse, University Health Services has taken a public policy approach by assessing the whole student population and focusing on prevention using data from bi-annual surveys and student programs in order to evaluate students' needs.

“Alcohol is far and away the biggest challenge we face,” said Sarah Van Orman, executive director of University Health Services. “Our interest is really in this prevention side. We've got 42,000 students to impact, and the most important thing we can do is to make sure that we're collecting data and sharing it.”

Along with e-checkup systems that allow students to anonymously evaluate their marijuana and alcohol consumption habits, UHS is also implementing classroom outreaches and a new educational program called Alcohol EDU. Last year, students new to campus housing completed a tutorial on the effects of alcohol and average consumption rates in order to change public perception and help the university gather information on students' drinking habits.

“We found that we have very high rates of students who, when they enter our university, have much more experience with alcohol than first-year students in other states and across the nation,” Van Orman said. “They also have much higher rates of drinking than other students nationally. That's part of Wisconsin.”

While UHS offers traditional one-on-one and group counseling sessions, meant as short-term support for struggling students, they also use a quick diagnostics system with behavioral health specialists in an effort to identify students with more serious needs, and to direct them to community contacts if the student is interested.

“People come in with immediate problems. Maybe they broke their finger, but we're also getting other information. Maybe they're smoking marijuana a lot or maybe they're drinking a lot,” said Amy Marguliese, a senior counselor with UHS. “It may or may not have anything to do with that broken finger, but the doctor can move on, and if the patient is willing, a behavioral health specialist comes in.”

The public policy approach that UHS has adopted allows groups like the Division of Student Life, the Division of Housing and the UW-Madison Police Department to come together and fight substance abuse collectively from different angles.

“There's a huge amount of collaboration,” Van Orman says. “When we think about any of the initiatives we've had, they're really a team effort between folks who touch students' experiences outside of the classroom. We want to try to convene and guide all those other parts of campus that have a much larger role than we do in many ways.”

The collaboration extends off campus as well. For many students in recovery, finding a substance-free living environment can be a challenge, as Connect House Sober Living founder Caroline Miller can attest, having a healthy support system at home can be the difference between success and relapse.

“Throughout my college years I was in and out of recovery, trying to change my lifestyle and having trouble doing it,” Miller says. “I just felt a strong desire to help provide services and resources that I didn't have.”

Connect House, along with Aaron's House and Next Step, offers sober living options near campus for students in recovery. Residents live independent lives in the house, but have an on-site mentor and roommates who are also living in recovery as added support. While the organizations are independent of each other, they come together annually for fundraisers and share a goal of fostering a more comprehensive recovery community in downtown Madison.

As sober living alternatives and organizations like Live Free for students in recovery gain traction and popularity on campus, the discussion on substance abuse and on creating a culture of recovery is gaining legitimacy, especially in a state where alcohol is such a cultural constant.

“Our staff is always evolving and we're always doing our best, but one of the things that we'd like to see in five years is a better net for people who are in trouble,” Margulies says. “There are campuses all across the country (with) collegiate recovery programs where they have directors, staff and scholarships. Maybe we'll have that here someday, too. We're already statistically above average when it comes to alcohol use, why can't we be above average in responding?”

While Aaron's House, Connect House and Next Step do not use waiting lists, the demand still far exceeds their capacity to house students in recovery. According to Miller, as more opportunities become available, isolated students in recovery are reaching out, and the community response has been positive.

“Nationally there's this movement for collegiate recovery programs that's kind of taking off; it's really great,” Miller says. “Things are moving forward in such a positive direction. I feel like the downtown community and the campus community are really coming together, realizing that more resources and support are needed for students.”