Company hopes to make mental health transition "seamless"

March 04--CARLSBAD -- In less than a month, Golden Services will take over Carlsbad's drug and alcohol rehabilitation program, in what it hopes will be a "seamless" transition for patients.

State officials confirmed Monday night that Golden Services, a home health and hospice company, was awarded the contract for funding to take over the Villa de Esperanza, Southeastern New Mexico's only residential substance abuse treatment program.

Carlsbad was in danger of losing the Villa de Esperanza's services when the holder of the current contract, Turquoise Health and Wellness, announced that it was pulling out of New Mexico at the end of March.

Golden Services is working with Presbyterian Medical Services, the company expanding to take over many of Turquoise's outpatient services.

The two companies plan to share office space at Turquoise's current location, so that patient services are not interrupted.

"We want to keep everything in place where it is, so it is a seamless transition for the clients," said Carl Lieberwirth, owner of Golden Services.

Rex Wilson, the director of Presbyterian Medical Services for the Southern region, said at a meeting Friday that interruptions in care would be limited as much as possible.

"There will be a period where training and those kinds of things will have to take place, but I think we're doing everything we can to be compatible and work together within the community," Wilson said Friday.

Everything is on schedule for Golden Services to begin providing services through Villa de Esperanza by April 1, and the company is in the process of applying for other contracts to complement those services.

"Our future plans are not only to maintain, but to expand," Lieberwirth said.

Lieberwirth said Golden Services is in the process of getting contracts for the Juvenile Community Corrections program, Intensive Outpatient Therapy, the drug court program through Judge Castaneda and a probation drug-testing program.

"All the programs work hand in hand," Lieberwirth said.

Lieberwirth said things seem to be "working out" for those contracts to be in place by April 1 as well.

Golden Services will continue to offer all of its current home health and hospice services.

Lieberwirth said that he will learn more about the details of the contract at a webinar on Monday, but to the best of his knowledge, the contract does not include a time period that Golden Services must continue to provide service.

The contract will provide compensation to Golden Services on a per-day basis, in the form of a block grant, Lieberwirth said.

Lieberwirth said all the groups he has worked with have been supportive of Golden Service's efforts to keep the residential substance abuse treatment local.

"Golden Services is supporting the community," Lieberwirth said. "All we ask is that the community supports us."

Katie England can be reached at 575-628-5516.

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