A new home for recovery

A new home for recovery

By Nickie Doria

Photo by Maria Farias.

Patients who seek recovery from addiction and eating disorders now have access to new, well-appointed facilities at the UF&Shands Florida Recovery Center, which opened a scenic campus in southwest Gainesville in July.

Just minutes from the UF College of Medicine and Shands at UF, the recovery center is home to the largest group of faculty in the U.S. specializing in addiction medicine and addiction psychiatry. The center serves clients from around the country, from all walks of life.

Twenty percent of all deaths in the U.S. are linked to addictions and one-third of all hospital inpatient costs — billions of dollars annually — are addiction-related, according to a recent study at the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University.

“Addiction affects not only the afflicted individuals but also the lives of so many others around them,” said Scott A. Teitelbaum, M.D., medical director of the UF&Shands Florida Recovery Center. “Addiction touches all aspects of one’s life — physical, emotional and spiritual, as well as work, relationships and finances. No one is immune.”

Eating disorders are another growing health epidemic within the U.S., especially among the college population. UF eating disorder experts are keenly aware of the strong relationship between eating disorders and addictions, and are on a path to bridge treatment for patients.

The new campus provides spacious accommodations for recovering individuals enrolled in programs for pain management, eating disorders, co-occurrence of health and addiction problems and drug dependency that results after treatment for other medical conditions.

Formerly a Marriott Residence Inn, the new campus has a serene wooded environment that is conducive to intensive, long-term treatment and lifelong recovery. Newly renovated living suites each accommodate up to three people. Common spaces include a fellowship hall, sports court, reflection pool, outdoor barbecue and laundry room.