There is still a stigma around addiction, even nearly 30 years after former National Institute on Drug Abuse director Alan Leshner argued that addiction is a brain disease.
Dr. Steven Ey, chief of service at Hoag Addiction Treatment Centers, still sees it all the time.
“The idea of it being a moral failing is still a problem,” Ey said. “It’s not as if someone says, ‘Hey, you know what? I just want to go to treatment one day.’ They typically will try to get sober, try it on their own and with willpower. That’s the whole moral concept — ‘I can handle this if I just behave correctly.’”
A soon-to-be built addiction treatment center on the Hoag campus in Newport Beach is intended to offer more support for those seeking help with addiction and substance use and their families, according to the hospital’s officials.
Hoag broke ground Wednesday on the CareMar Recovery Center, a two-story facility that is expected to open in 2027.
The center, first announced by Hoag about a year ago, was spurred on by a $25-million donation from the Martin and Pickup families. Dr. Kambria Hittelman, executive director of Hoag Addiction Treatment Centers, said it will feature a residential center on the first floor.
Outpatient services, including partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient services, will be on the second floor, Hittelman said, along with additional support services.
Those include programs like family programming, fellowship and community outreach. The hospital will also develop specialized tracts that will likely be gender-specific, with other tracts targeting seniors or trauma-specific groups.
“This new center is truly a vision of excellence,” Hoag President and chief executive Robert Braithwaite said at the groundbreaking ceremony. “For decades, we kind of looked toward the desert and the Betty Ford Center as being the beacon of addiction medicine. When this center finishes in 2027, the CareMar Recovery Center will be that beacon of hope as we go forward into the next 50 years. We are so grateful and proud of this moment.”
Opioid-related hospitalizations and deaths have risen both nationwide and in Orange County in recent years, primarily driven by fentanyl. The Orange County Health Care Agency reported that opioid-related deaths countywide tripled from 2017 to 2021, from 7.9 deaths per 100,000 people to 23.2.
With the CareMar Recovery Center, Hoag will increase its residential beds, from 21 to 38, and its overall capacity by hundreds. Hittelman added that with the center not slated to open for a couple of years, things could evolve as programming is discussed.
“It’s a big milestone for us,” she said. “We’re super excited.”
Braithwaite also announced Wednesday that Hoag’s 23rd endowed chair has been created, the Daniel G. Smith Endowed Chair in Addiction Medicine and Prevention. Danny Smith dedicated his life’s work to addiction treatment and recovery before passing away last year at the age of 49, according to his wife, Melissa Smith.
Danny Smith’s parents, Chuck Smith and Melinda Hoag Smith, are president and executive director, respectively, of the George Hoag Family Foundation, a philanthropic organization that funds health care programs, social service programs and youth-oriented organizations throughout Southern California.
Melissa Smith said the endowed chair will ensure that her late husband’s vision, commitment and passion for addiction care will live on, while continuing the family’s legacy of service through Hoag.
“This center represents a profound commitment to saving lives and restoring families,” she said.”On behalf of all who will find healing within these walls and on this ground, I express my deepest gratitude. Your generosity ensures that Hoag will continue to provide the compassionate, world-class care that it is known for, for addiction and substance use disorders right here in Newport Beach.”