The Hill Country Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse (HCCADA) was organized in 1991 by funds from the Texas Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse (TCADA). HCCADA is a 501(c)(3) organization, and is the result of a long-standing community-level Substance Abuse Coalition concerned with this problem in our area.
Our purpose is to provide outpatient treatment and education on the problem of substance abuse for both adults and youth in our five-county area.
Clients are referred to our agency by the Adult and Juvenile Probation Departments, local social service agencies, Attorneys, Child Protective Service, employers, local schools and from self referrals.
The majority of our client base is derived from rural and small town communities resulting in the majority of clients being in the low income bracket from the counties of Bandera, Gillespie, Kendall, Kerr and Medina and counties as far as Uvalde, Bexar, Harris, and others.
Our client base is 85-90% laborers and has an education level of 11th grade. Their ages range from 12 to 65 plus years of age. Upon completion of substance abuse treatment, many of our clients are referred to various agencies for vocational or future education as well as mental and physical rehabilitation programs.
Over the years, HCCADA has developed strong working relationships with county officials and other social service agencies through signed “Letters of Agreement.”
HCCADA provides 1 hour substance abuse evaluations and all four of the State Mandated Offender Education Programs. These programs consist of: DWI Education Program; DWI Intervention Program; Drug Offender Education Program, and Alcohol Awareness Program for Minors.
Since 2002, HCCADA has received State and Federal funding from the Department of State and Health Services (DSHS) to provide adult male/female substance abuse outpatient treatment. HCCADA has a 4 month treatment program, currently serving over 150 persons annually with outpatient services.
In 2002 HCCADA implemented a youth and parent 10-week counseling program called “Youth In Crisis.” This program has proven very effective for youth being referred for truancy issues at school.
During the course of the 10 weeks, counselors are finding more than truancy issues. These youth are experiencing severe problems that need and are being addressed with one-on-one therapy and group counseling. The “Youth In Crisis” program is beneficial to the parents’ who attend once a week in the evening as they learn how to relate better to their children and are given the tools needed to take back their roles as parents.
Two other programs which are requested regularly are the "Anti-Theft" program and the "Victim's Impact Panel." The “Anti-Theft” program counsels clients on the issues of credit card abuse and other forms of theft. The “Victims Impact Panel” program gets to the heart of those affected by drunk driving or who affect the lives of others when they continue to drink, drug and drive.
In addition, HCCADA is a “Certified Drug Collection Site” for urinalysis and hair follicle testing. Referrals come from the court systems, Child Protective Services, businesses, judges and local school districts and universities.
HCCADA accepts Medicaid, CHIP and other insurance company benefit plans to assist our patients needing our services.
Staff consists of: 4 Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselors; 1 Licensed Professional Counselor; 2 administrative staff; and two contracted staff who are also Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselors.
Each year HCCADA enjoys volunteers who have provided in-kind support; and letters of support from our area judges indicate the need for the services HCCADA provides.
HCCADA provided services to almost 3,000 individuals this fiscal year. Based on the number of programs HCCADA provides, the number of persons served, and our resolve to maintain quality services for the past 17 years, we believe this is quite an accomplishment.
