Step 1: Telephone Pre-Screening

The “typical” patient is screened by the StepOne Service℠ staff via telephone to determine the current severity level of their withdrawal symptoms, obtain all insurance information, and begin discussing a tentative transition plan to outpatient care, which allows the staff to evaluate an individual’s level of motivation for continued treatment.

Step 2: In-Person Assessment

A comprehensive in-person assessment is conducted by the StepOne Service℠ staff to determine medical comorbidities, past experiences while in withdrawal, and a complete drug/alcohol use history. At the conclusion of this assessment, with all admission criteria being met, the physician will be contacted to make the final determination for admission.

Step 3: Admission

StepOne Service℠ staff coordinate with the hospital’s admissions team and communicates with the patient throughout this process.

Step 4: Acute Withdrawal Management

Around-the-clock medical care is provided by the hospital’s designated doctor and existing nurses who are orientated and trained during implementation of the service. This clinical team monitors each patient, while using protocol-specific medications in order to reduce the severity of withdrawal symptoms to decrease the dangers of withdrawal throughout this first step of the individual’s treatment process.

Step 5: Individualized Discharge Planning

Once the patient is admitted, the StepOne Service℠ staff continues discussions with the patient throughout the inpatient stay to develop an individualized discharge plan that includes appropriate referrals to the next level of care.

Step 6: Post-Discharge Follow-Up

StepOne Service℠ staff conduct follow-up calls on a scheduled basis to discern whether former participants have followed through with established discharge plans and to determine current sobriety status. These communications include patient satisfaction surveys used to both improve the patient experience through the StepOne Service℠ and evaluate the level of satisfaction with community resources utilized for discharge planning.