Didn't have a good experience trying to call for information to the St. Cloud Healthcare System. I just wanted to ask about the Brainerd Clinic but had to go through a lot of hoops just to get to someone who was willing to talk to me.
About Brainerd VA Clinic
Brainerd VA Clinic is an outpatient facility located in the beautiful lake town of Brainerd in Minnesota. This facility is known for delivering quality and individualized care for veterans. The facility offers primary care and specialty services including mental health care and smoke cessation. Their services are low-cost and they also accept Medicare, Medicaid and TRICARE. You can even fund your treatment through VA financial hardship assistance if you're uninsured and having financial challenges.
You’ll especially find their comprehensive and secured telehealth services very convenient. This includes video conferencing and home telehealth services.
They even provide secure store-and-forward telehealth that lets you securely send or receive health information to and from your community VA facilities. They support same day appointments and walk-in express care for emergency health issues. You may even access care if you’re not enrolled in the VA health care.
Their outpatient mental health care addresses common psychiatric conditions like depression, anxiety and PTSD. This program can also help veterans overcome substance use disorders (SUD) and co-occurring conditions. The latter is when you’re simultaneously dealing with both mental conditions and addictive behaviors.
The facility supports and equips you with relevant recovery tools to overcome these behavioral conditions. They offer highly confidential and individualized outpatient services. This includes consultation, evaluation and individual and group therapy.
The therapy group helps you address the underlying causes of your behavioral challenges and build solid coping skills. Emphasis is on preventing relapse and maintaining sobriety. You’ll learn to manage anger and emotion better, communicate effectively and build healthy relationships.
These essential life skills promote sober living. Psychotherapeutic exercises and medication management services may also be accessible to support those with co-occurring conditions.
If you’re struggling with quitting smoking, this facility can also help you in that aspect. They offer support and strategies that complement optional nicotine replacement therapy. These may involve using FDA-approved medications to manage nicotine withdrawal and the urge to smoke. This is supported with in-person and phone-based counseling to fast-track withdrawal.
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Accepted Insurance
Other Forms of Payment
Self-pay involves paying for treatment out of your own pocket. You can use savings or credit, get a personal loan, or receive help from family and friends to fund your treatment. If you don't have insurance or your insurance plan doesn't cover a specific program, self-pay can help ensure you still get the care you need.
Financial aid can take many forms. Centers may have grants or scholarships available to clients who meet eligibility requirements. Programs that receive SAMHSA grants may have financial aid available for those who need treatment as well. Grants and scholarships can help you pai for treatment without having to repay.
Military members, veterans, and eligible dependents have access to specific insurance programs that help them get the care they need. TRICARE and VA insurance can help you access low cost or no cost addiction and mental health treatment. Programs that accept military insurance often have targeted treatment focused on the unique challenges military members, veterans, and their families face.
Private insurance refers to any kind of healthcare coverage that isn't from the state or federal government. This includes individual and family plans offered by an employer or purchased from the Insurance Marketplace. Every plan will have different requirements and out of pocket costs so be sure to get the full details before you start treatment.
Per session payment lets you pay for each treatment at the time of service. You may also pay for a certain number of sessions up front and then pay for more if needed. This format allows you to tailor the financial investment to your specific needs and avoid having a large lump sum payment due at the end of the treatment program.
Addiction Treatments
Levels of Care
Outpatient Outpatient Programs (OP) are for those seeking mental rehab or drug rehab, but who also stay at home every night. The main difference between outpatient treatment (OP) and intensive outpatient treatment (IOP) lies in the amount of hours the patient spends at the facility. Most of the time an outpatient program is designed for someone who has completed an inpatient stay and is looking to continue their growth in recovery. Outpatient is not meant to be the starting point, it is commonly referred to as aftercare.
Treatments
Many of those suffering from addiction also suffer from mental or emotional illnesses like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, or anxiety disorders. Rehab and other substance abuse facilities treating those with a dual diagnosis or co-occurring disorder administer psychiatric treatment to address the person's mental health issue in addition to drug and alcohol rehabilitation.
Mental health rehabs focus on helping individuals recover from mental illnesses like bipolar disorder, clinical depression, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, and more. Mental health professionals at these facilities are trained to understand and treat mental health issues, both in individual and group settings.
Programs
Adult Program
Adult rehab programs include therapies tailored to each client's specific needs, goals, and recovery progress. They are tailored to the specific challenges adult clients may face, including family and work pressures and commitments. From inpatient and residential treatment to various levels of outpatient services, there are many options available. Some facilities also help adults work through co-occurring conditions, like anxiety, that can accompany addiction.
Program For Men
Men face specific challenges and concerns when seeking addiction treatment. Gender-specific recovery programs help them tackle these issues head-on in an environment that's focused, targeted, and distraction-free. It also gives them the opportunity to connect with and learn from other men who have been through a similar journey and can offer support for the next step.
Program For Women
Rehabs for women provide a safe, nurturing space for female clients to heal. These treatment programs consider the specific obstacles that women can face during recovery and place a special emphasis on mental, social, physical, and reproductive health. They explore how each woman's experience has shaped the trajectory of their substance use, addressing issues such as sexual abuse and past trauma.
Young Adult Program
Young adulthood can be an exciting, yet difficult, time of transition. Individuals in their late teens to mid-20s face unique stressors related to school, jobs, families, and social circles, which can lead to a rise in substance use. Rehab centers with dedicated young adult programs will include activities and amenities that cater to this age group, with an emphasis on specialized counseling, peer socialization, and ongoing aftercare.
Seniors Program
Nearly one million adults age 65 and older live with a substance use disorder. Treatment providers who specialize in senior care understand the social, psychological, and physical effects of aging and how they relate to recovery. They can help clients address particular challenges and risks they may face as they get older such as overdosing and medication interactions and dependencies.
Clinical Services
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.
Dialectical behavior therapy focuses on four skills: emotional regulation, mindfulness, acceptance and distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness. Treatment involves individual sessions, as well as group sessions where you can start applying the skills you learn.
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.
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.
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.
Whether a marriage or other committed relationship, an intimate partnership is one of the most important aspects of a person's life. Drug and alcohol addiction affects both members of a couple in deep and meaningful ways, as does rehab and recovery. Couples therapy and other couples-focused treatment programs are significant parts of exploring triggers of addiction, as well as learning how to build healthy patterns to support ongoing sobriety.
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.
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.
Amenities
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Private Setting -
River View
Accreditations
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: 2382
Contact Information
(218) 855-1115 
722 NW 7th Street
Brainerd, MN 56401
Get Help Now - 800-985-8516
Who Answers?
Who Answers?
Fact checked and written by:
Chika Uchendu
Edited by:
Courtney Myers, MS
