Behavioral Health & Substance Use
Let’s get started!
We help everyone regardless of ability to pay. Sliding scale fee available.
“This health center receives HHS funding and has Federal Public Health Service (PHS) deemed status with respect to certain health or health-related claims, including medical malpractice claims, for itself and its covered individuals.”
Our unique programs combine clinical expertise with community building, so that every patient – regardless of circumstance – feels at home.
Located throughout New York City and Brooklyn, our clinics exist to elevate clients’ voices and advocate for their emotional, behavioral, and psychological needs through evidence-based, client-centered approaches to mind and body well-being, including:
- Collaborative psychologists, psychiatrists, and social workers dedicated to integrated care
- 1-on-1 counseling
- couples and family therapy
- Groups
- Drug use support grounded in harm reduction principles
- Recovery
- Counseling programs specific for HIV-Positive individuals
- Spanish and Haitian Creole speaking counselors available
Behavioral Health & Substance Use Services
-
Harm Reduction
Harm reduction is a set of practical strategies to address individuals who are using substances or engaging in high-risk behaviors that can cause harm to one self. It is about lowering barriers to well-being for everyone and placing each individual’s quality of life before judgment of their behavior. It is a philosophy and approach to life that encompasses many different segments of society. Some harm reduction tools and interventions include syringe exchange and overdose prevention, like Narcan.
Syringe Exchange
Sterile syringes are one of the best ways to prevent the spread of HIV and Hep C. Housing Works Community Healthcare is well-versed in syringe use, and regularly provides sterile syringes, safety kits, condoms, and counseling for sexually active neighbors in our community who are at high risk of transmission. We’re dedicated to making sure everyone has access to protection in a safe, culturally-sensitive, and judgment free setting, so we can stop the spread of life-altering diseases through radical prevention.
Supportive Services
We provide individual and group level health education, risk reduction counseling, supportive counseling, and HIV/Hepatitis C testing. By providing health and hepatitis care coordination through harm reduction, people are likely to engage in and take ownership of their health. Also, holistic services such as acupuncture provide people with the opportunity to more fully engage in their healthcare.
Ryan White Harm Reduction Services
People living with HIV/AIDS and people who use drugs encounter challenges in engaging with and maintaining care. These populations have been rejected by traditional health services because circumstances beyond their control. We provide people living with HIV/AIDS and their partners/families with harm reduction techniques, resources, counseling, and education about how to safely use substances and enroll in treatment. Accompaniment services, health care coordination, case management services, and acupuncture services, provide people with a holistic level of care and enable them to take ownership and awareness of their care.
Opioid/Opiate Overdose Recognition & Response
Accidental drug poisoning/overdose is one of the leading causes of premature death in New York. One of the best ways to reduce someone’s likelihood of accidental overdose is through education and awareness. Using Naloxone/Narcan greatly increases the chances of someone surviving an accidental overdose. Learn how to save someone's life by recognizing the signs of an overdose, what causes them, and how to respond.
Methamphetamine Harm Reduction
The program conducts comprehensive outreach services to engage the target population, using an online social media-based outreach strategy and Drop-in Space(s) to facilitate low-threshold support services and provide direct support for people who use methamphetamine. The program identifies potential clients who are actively using methamphetamine and meet the program criteria in high-risk real or virtual venues frequented by at risk individuals. Also, the program provides benefits navigation, linkage to services, methamphetamine counseling, health education, and connection to PrEP and PEP services.
-
Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS) / Outpatient Drug Treatment
Housing Works Community Health Care OASAS program is one of the first programs in New York City that firmly embraces the Harm Reduction Approach. We understand that everyone’s recovery journey looks different. Our program meets people where they are in their recovery, whether they are just thinking about starting the journey or in need of support along the journey. We empower individuals though our harm reduction approach to decrease the harm that they may be doing to themselves and their significant others. We have two locations which we provide a variety of services including Individual and Group Counseling, Referrals to Case Management, Mental Health and Medication Assisted Treatment to help you in your recovery journey. We are also able to assist family members who also may need support.
We have two locations one at 1751 Park Avenue in Manhattan and another at 2640 Pitkin Avenue in Brooklyn, We provide services both in person and via telehealth. We also accept walk ins. If you are ready to start your journey, Housing Works can partner with you to start the process. Please feel free to reach out to our call center 718-277-0386 and start your journey today. We are here to help.
-
CORE: Community Oriented Recovery & Empowerment
For many people recovering from mental health or addiction challenges, deciding what to do next in life and how to get there can be an overwhelming process. If you are recovering from mental health or addiction challenges and want to become more stable in your recovery or gain greater independence, the CORE Community Oriented Recovery & Empowerment program might be able to help. Our team of Mental Health Counselors and Peer Specialists will work with you in our office, your home, or through video conferencing to help you set and achieve your personal short-term and long-term goals. Whether your goals are focused on Independence, Education & Employment, Health Management, or Strengthening your Peer and Family Support Systems, we can help you build a plan and stick with it. You can read more about CORE by following this link: CORE Services, or visiting the NYS OMH website.
To speak with someone from our team about enrolling in CORE, or to make a referral, contact Tori Chen via email at t.chen1@housingworks.org, or by phone at 347-473-7428, or 929-251-2094.
95%
of patients would recommend our primary care to a friend.
LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR IMPACT
Questions
Does harm reduction enable substance use?
Harm Reduction does not promote drug use. We provide individuals with techniques, interventions, modalities, and tools to keep people from hurting themselves and others.
Why would you tell someone that it's OK to use drugs?
The Harm Reduction principle accepts that people use drugs as a way of dealing with or managing other stresses and challenges. The Harm Reduction approach is intended to help people who use drugs address these things, and to maintain other health goals. We believe that all deserve healthcare, regardless of whether or not they use substances.
Why can't people just say no to drugs?
When someone suffers from chemical dependency, it is not about just saying no, it is usually much more complex than this. Substance use is deeply connected to clinical-socio-economic dynamics one experiences throughout their life. Historically, someone who uses drugs has said “no” many, many, many times in their lifetime.
If substance use is a disease, why don’t people go to the hospital instead of your program?
Our healthcare system does not provide effective or long lasting interventions to substance users. People are ready to handle their addiction at different stages and hospitals are not generally the best choice. Folks who seek treatment in hospitals get temporary care with limited results.
At the program level, people who use drugs can receive ongoing interventions and counseling until they realize or are ready for the next level. Many programs offer mental health counseling, support groups, and supportive services that empower people who use drugs to make changes at the right time for them.
Locations
Looking for a healthcare provider? Visit us at one of our locations below or reach out now to connect with us.
