West County Medical Clinic

They provide outpatient, telemedicine and detox. Whichever one you start at the usual pattern is to step down through the levels rather than stop at once, and Lakewood is the closest place to carry that on if you move.

They detox from opioids. Coming off opioids without medical supervision can be dangerous, which is why it matters that this is one of 3 places near Long Beach that do it.

They offer a program for veterans, which is worth confirming on the call rather than assuming. A named program and one with a place free this month are different things, and Long Beach has 8 other centers to ask.

Outpatient only. Nobody stays overnight, so the week is built around appointments you travel to in Long Beach.

They treat adults from 26 to 64 and young adults from 18 to 25. Anyone outside that range is worth a call rather than an assumption, and Long Beach has 8 other centers to try.

They work in Spanish as well as English. Ask whether the group sessions in Long Beach are in Spanish too, or only the one to one ones.

They normally continue, and a prescriber reviews the whole list rather than applying a rule to it. A pain condition does not disappear during treatment and should be part of the conversation from the start. Ask what their position is on prescribed medication generally, because positions differ.

Medication is one tool in a program, and for opioid use disorder it is the one with the strongest evidence behind it. Some programs are abstinence based by design and do not use medication at all, which is a real difference between centers. Ask what happens if the first medication does not suit you.