SERVICES

On May 1, 1975 the Central Naugatuck Valley Consortium for Alcoholism Services, Inc. began as a private, non-profit organization providing a comprehensive service-delivery system for alcohol related problems. This system of services was based upon the philosophy that alcoholism is a progressive family disease that is treatable and preventable. The Central Coordinating Unit functioned as the coordinator and program developer, insuring a continuum of care. As a pilot project, federally funded through the single state agency, our systems of services was favorably reviewed as a cohesive system for the delivery of alcoholism services.

In 1981, the single state alcohol and drug agency discontinued the funding of all the consortia due to federal budget cuts. Our central office was funded as an Alcohol and Drug Council. Having pioneered the assertive early intervention approach to chemical dependency within Connecticut, we began concentrating our efforts upon raising the level of awareness about alcohol and other drug use and misuse.  A result was our beginning to work with families much earlier in the stages of addiction. Our philosophy is based upon the thesis that those people who are concerned about and affected by the problem drinker/drug abuser can initiate a program of recovery, first and foremost for themselves. In turn, these people begin to intervene in the chemical dependent's cycle of destruction. The natural outgrowth was the establishment of two distinct programs under the "Consortium" umbrella: The Family Intervention Center and the Alcohol and Drug Council.

We became licensed as an adult psychiatric outpatient clinic under the Connecticut Department of Health Services.

Although our particular area of expertise was chemical dependency, we work with individuals and families who are hurting as the result of other emotional pressures and stress, as well as working with the compulsive over-eater. Our clinical staff consists of social workers, a psychiatrist, APRN's, and certified alcoholism and drug counselors. Our affiliation with the National Council of Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc. enables us to have nationwide access to new materials and programs thereby keeping us abreast of the state of the art.

In 1990, our fifteenth year in the Central Naugatuck Valley region, we consolidated our many names and officially became The Family Intervention Center. We have grown, changed, and yet remained the same in that our mission statement is still "Promoting wellness through education, intervention and treatment.