The Big Island Substance Abuse Council has added 16 new treatment beds in Keaau to help people during substance use recovery.
The beds will increase BISAC’s bed capacity by nearly 40%.
The treatment beds are located inside two houses in Keaau that BISAC purchased with grant funding.
“These two new homes are just the first step,” said BISAC CEO Hannah Preston-Pita in a statement. “We are building capacity and strengthening our ability to provide services for our community and island.”
There will be eight beds in each house, bringing the total number of BISAC beds to 48 throughout Hawaii Island.
These will be BISAC’s first beds in Keaau, with the other 32 treatment and recovery beds located throughout Hilo.
“One of the most important aspects of recovery — finding an affordable, safe place to live with people supportive of a sober environment — is often the most difficult to access,” Preston-Pita said.
With the new beds, BISAC representatives confirmed plans to hire additional staff members to support those in recovery, but declined to provide the number of staff required for the new beds.
The beds have opened immediately and assessments are completed to determine placement of clients.
More information can be found at https://bisac.org/