In 2017, 1,078 Tennesseans died from drug overdoses, an uptick from previous years. A new addiction treatment facility plans to slash that number.
Spero Health — an organization specializing in treatment for patients with substance abuse issues — announced its plan to open a clinic in Smyrna on May 1. The clinic is enrolled in TennCare and accepts Medicare, and partners with select insurances.
The organization has 23 other clinics checkered across Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio, serving 5,300 patients. Dr. Medhat Kalliny — a board-certified physician in family medicine and board-eligible in addiction medicine — is the medical director and lead physician at the Smyrna clinic.
“It is my pleasure to be working in this community to help bring recovery home, removing treatment barriers and equipping individuals with the tools to improve their overall health to achieve sustained long-term recovery,” Kalliny said in a news release.
Across the state, 388 non-fatal drug overdoses were reported in 2017, with 72 of them being from opioids and 81 from heroin. On Wednesday, the Department of Justice announced 32 Tennessee medical professionals were charged in a drug scheme in a massive opioid crackdown.
According to state research, Rutherford County saw a drop of more than 20 overdose hospital stays in 2017. Last year the county joined a chorus of other communities in a federal lawsuit against opioid manufacturers. In Tennessee — where more opiate prescriptions are doled out per capita than any state except West Virginia — Nashville, Williamson County, Smith County and White County filed their own federal suits.
The Spero clinic will be located at 301 Wolverine Trail, Suite 200 in Smyrna and is accepting patients. The clinic can be reached at 615-751-0579 for more information.