“ NOW, WE CAN T R E A T T H E WHO L E P E RSON , WI T H WRAP-AROUND S E RV I C E S . ” – Delores King, counselor, ABA Health Services
addictive substances, she notes. “They can cause a person to just want to escape from what they are feeling.” For some addiction treatment programs, success does not always lead to better patient care, King says. “Sometimes, the bigger programs become, the farther away they get from the community.” In some cases, she feels grassroots-level, community based treatment programs have an advantage over large institutional programs in providing effective treatment. accompanied by the ability to establish a strong therapeutic relationship with each person, based on showing respect and empathy. “When people feel you have a vested interest in them getting better, and realize that you don't see them as just another dollar, then they take an interest in doing what they need to do,” King says. Many treatment consumers “have been in numerous treatment programs and they have learned to 'read' people very well. It doesn't matter to them how many degrees you have; they want to know that you care about them and their recovery.” “ P E OP L E WAN T T O KNOW T HA T YOU CAR E ABOU T T H EM AND T H E I R R E COVE RY . ” – Delores King To effectively serve consumers, professional experience and knowledge need to be
A New York native, King has been working in the behavioral health eld since 1998, when she began as a residential counselor, working with juveniles who had been referred to treatment by the courts. Later, she volunteered at Harlem Hospital, working with the babies of crack-addicted mothers. She moved to the Baltimore area in 2001. King's initial interest in the mental health eld was family-related; as a child, a sister was diagnosed with mental illness. “I grew up knowing she had some kind of illness, but, since I was young, I didn't have much of an understanding of the situation,” she recalls. King's desire to help her mother take care of her sister shaped her educational path. She went on to earn a bachelor's degree in human services (with a social work minor) and a master's degree in addiction counseling; she is currently working on a master's degree in psychology. Between 2006 and 2011, King ran her own community-based mental health program in Baltimore, Alpha and Omega Transitional and Recovery. Undiagnosed mental health conditions – such as psychosis, depression or bipolar disorder – often lead people to seek relief in alcohol or other
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