Altoona VA James E. Van Zandt – Johnstown OP Clinic - Johnstown, PA

About the Facility

Altoona VA James E. Van Zandt Medical Center provides behavioral health and primary care to Veterans who are enrolled and eligible for VA health care. They offer behavioral healthcare including consultation, evaluation, and treatment for a variety of issues that can impact emotional well-being. Johnstown OP Clinic is located in Johnstown, Pennsylvania.

Altoona VA exists to serve the veteran through the delivery of timely quality care by staff who demonstrate outstanding customer service. They hope to serve and honor the nation’s veterans following President Lincoln’s promise “To care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan”.

Some of the services offered by Altoona VA James E. Van Zandt – Johnstown OP Clinic include Behavioral Health, Laboratory Services, Nutrition Services, Preventive Care, Primary Care, Social Work Services, Tobacco Cessation, and Prescriptions.

They also provide Veterans with Telehealth, for access to health care that is timely, more convenient and easier to access through the use of new health care technology including video conferencing and health monitoring devices that can connect patients to their health care team.

Accreditations

Joint Commission

The Joint Commission, formerly known as JCAHO, is a nonprofit organization that accredits rehab organizations and programs. Founded in 1951, the Joint Commision's mission is to improve the quality of patient care and demonstrating the quality of patient care.

Joint Commission Accreditation: Yes
Accreditation Number: 4583

Treatment

Mental Health

If you have a mental health condition and an addiction, it is critical to address both conditions simultaneously. If you only address the mental health disorder, you’ll likely continue to use drugs or alcohol, which can make your mental health issues even worse. On the other hand, if you only address the addiction, you won’t have the tools to cope with your mental health disorder in a healthy way.

Insurance and Financial

Self-pay options
Military insurance
Financial aid
Private insurance
Per session

Programs

Adult program
Elderly program
HIV/AIDS program
LGBTQ program
Military program
Program for men
Program for women
Young adult program

Levels of Care

Outpatient

Outpatient rehabs specialize in providing comprehensive care for clients who choose to remain in their homes and communities during treatment. Their services may include transitional support for clients stepping down from intensive inpatient programming. Ambulatory medical detox may be provided for clients at low risk for withdrawal complications. Many programs include evening, night, and weekend services to accommodate clients who are working professionals or caregivers. Addiction counseling and life skills training are common treatment modalities.

Aftercare Support

Completing a drug or alcohol rehab program shouldn't spell the end of substance abuse treatment. Aftercare involves making a sustainable plan for recovery, including ongoing support. This can include sober living arrangements like halfway houses, career counseling, and setting a patient up with community programs like Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) or Narcotics Anonymous (NA).

Clinical Services

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a therapy modality that focuses on the relationship between one's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. It is used to establish and allow for healthy responses to thoughts and feelings (instead of unhealthy responses, like using drugs or alcohol). CBT has been proven effective for recovering addicts of all kinds, and is used to strengthen a patient's own self-awareness and ability to self-regulate. CBT allows individuals to monitor their own emotional state, become more adept at communicating with others, and manage stress without needing to engage in substance abuse.

Family Therapy

Research clearly demonstrates that recovery is far more successful and sustainable when loved ones like family members participate in rehab and substance abuse treatment. Genetic factors may be at play when it comes to drug and alcohol addiction, as well as mental health issues. Family dynamics often play a critical role in addiction triggers, and if properly educated, family members can be a strong source of support when it comes to rehabilitation.

Group Therapy

Group therapy is any therapeutic work that happens in a group (not one-on-one). There are a number of different group therapy modalities, including support groups, experiential therapy, psycho-education, and more. Group therapy involves treatment as well as processing interaction between group members.

Individual Therapy

In individual therapy, a patient meets one-on-one with a trained psychologist or counselor. Therapy is a pivotal part of effective substance abuse treatment, as it often covers root causes of addiction, including challenges faced by the patient in their social, family, and work/school life.

Life Skills

Life skills trainings involve all the skills a person must have in order to function successfully in the world. These include time management, career guidance, money management, and effective communication. Truly successful addiction recovery is based on the ability to not only live substance-free, but to thrive. Life skills teaches the practical necessities of functioning in society, which sets clients up for success in life, and therefore sobriety.

Motivational Interviewing

Motivational Interviewing (MI) is a clinical approach to helping people with substance abuse issues and other conditions shift behavior in positive ways. It is more goal-oriented than traditional psychotherapy, as MI counselors directly attempt to get clients to consider making behavioral change (rather than wait for them to come to conclusions themselves). Its primary purpose is to resolve ambivalence and help clients become able to make healthy choices freely.

Nicotine Replacement Therapy

Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) is a way of getting nicotine into the bloodstream without smoking. It uses products that supply low doses of nicotine to help people stop smoking. The goal of therapy is to cut down on cravings for nicotine and ease the symptoms of nicotine withdrawal.

Nutrition Therapy

Nutrition therapy, aka medical nutrition therapy (MNT), is a way of treating physical, emotional, and medical conditions through diet. Specific dietary plans are designed by professional nutritionists or registered dietitians, and patients follow them in order to positively affect their physical and mental health.

Trauma Therapy

Trauma therapy addresses traumatic incidents from a client's past that are likely affecting their present-day experience. Trauma is often one of the primary triggers and potential causes of addiction, and can stem from child sexual abuse, domestic violence, having a parent with a mental illness, losing one or both parents at a young age, teenage or adult sexual assault, or any number of other factors. The purpose of trauma therapy is to allow a patient to process trauma and move through and past it, with the help of trained and compassionate mental health professionals.