Program Narrative

WestBridge is a private non-profit organization dedicated to supporting the recovery of individuals and families who experience co-occurring mental illness and substance use disorders. Our services are designed according to evidence-based practices that were developed through research on co-occurring disorders, and all interventions are tailored to meet the unique needs and strengths of individuals and their families.

Program Description

WestBridge utilizes evidence-based practices to provide treatment to individuals and families that experience co-occurring mental illness and substance use disorders. Our residential programs are safe, home-like environments that provide support and evaluation for adult men who are experiencing increased stress or whose lives have become chaotic as a result of their mental illness and substance abuse.

Our Residential Programs

WestBridge’s inpatient programs in Manchester, NH, and Brooksville, FL, provide stabilization, and enable participants to begin or to re-establish the healing process. The average length of stay in our residential programs is three to six months. This being said, there is no maximum length of stay at WestBridge. A core component of our philosophy is individualizing the care that we provide; we customize out treatment approach based on the stages of illness and, eventually, recovery that each individual experiences.

Our caring professionals are on-site 24 hours a day, to provide support, treatment intervention, encouragement, and monitoring. Each resident participates in individual, family, and group counseling, as well as wellness activities, medication services, psychiatric evaluation, and self-help. Each of our men’s residences also employs a full-time chef who prepares healthy and delicious meals. Enjoying a well-balanced diet, establishing a healthy sleep cycle, exercising, and living in a supportive substance-free environment enables each resident to reassess his current lifestyle and make decisions that will promote recovery.

Our Community Focus

As participants make progress, we support them in becoming increasingly involved in community activities, including work and school. We also design individualized transition plans with each participant, which include support from our Care Management team and gradual movement towards an independent lifestyle and residence. As participants transition into the community and regain increasing independence, our outpatient programs are fully equipped to customize flexible levels of care to support their ongoing needs throughout the recovery process.

Director Profile

In 2001, WestBridge started in Mary’s living room with a fax machine and a cell phone. As CEO, she is privileged to be part of this organization and to be able to use treatment methods proven to work. Her job is to make sure staff have the resources they need to provide the best possible care to our participants and families and to make sure that we are financially viable to continue to treat others. Mary worked as a RN in the operating room for four years and for the past 30 years has worked in a variety of addiction treatment settings including a Free Standing Detox, 28 bed Residential program, Women’s Halfway House, and Out-Patient clinics. She has also provided addiction education and assessments in the New Hampshire State Prison’s First Step Program. She has worked with people with Co-occurring Disorders for over 20 years in a variety of programs, including residential and community based services. She has been an adjunct professor at the University of New Hampshire School of Social Work teaching Graduate Students about addiction and addiction treatment. She has conducted educational presentations at numerous Addiction and Mental Health national and state conferences as well as in England. Mary is the Past President of NAADAC, the National Association of Addiction Professionals, the largest Addiction professional group in the United States. She has also served on a number of state and national committees related to professional development, advocacy, and treatment.