YAKIMA, Wash., Feb. 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Comprehensive Healthcare recently welcomed its first-ever board-certified addictionologist, Dr. Gillian Zuckerman, as part of the community behavioral health provider’s ongoing commitment to addressing the region’s growing substance use challenges.
Dr. Zuckerman’s primary goal is to expand access to care for community members struggling with substance use, ensuring that Comprehensive Healthcare is a go-to resource for support at any level of need.
“While Comprehensive Healthcare has been delivering substance use disorder services for decades, demand for treatment has surged in recent years and it’s critical that we respond with innovative solutions at the community level,” said Jodi Daly, Comprehensive Healthcare CEO. “Adding Dr. Zuckerman to our team is a powerful response to this call. She brings a multi-disciplinary background in family medicine, bolstered by dedicated study and experience in addiction medicine – an increasingly important field in its own right.”
Board-certified addictionologists receive specialized training to keep pace with medicine’s evolving understanding of addiction and the latest best practices for treatment. In her role, Dr. Zuckerman oversees Comprehensive Healthcare’s methadone clinic, in addition to supporting inpatient addiction programs, expanding resources for outpatient care and managing the new walk-in clinic in Yakima. She will also work collaboratively across the organization’s sites, ensuring a cohesive, compassionate and effective approach to addiction treatment.
Comprehensive Healthcare’s substance use disorder (SUD) services span five counties: Yakima, Kittitas, Benton, Franklin and Walla Walla. In addition to offering outpatient and intensive outpatient SUD services, the organization operates one of two opioid treatment programs in Central Washington and is the region’s sole methadone provider.
According to Dr. Zuckerman, Comprehensive Healthcare’s spectrum of services and collaboration with community-based providers are pivotal in meeting evolving SUD needs and providing wraparound care to clients.
“In the past, we had well-established treatment protocols for common street drugs, but that’s changing rapidly. Today, we’re grappling with fentanyl and even more dangerous substances, which require us to be adaptive and willing to learn from the clients we serve,” said Dr. Zuckerman. “I look forward to continuing to expand Comprehensive Healthcare’s SUD services, collaborating across our multi-county footprint and enhancing education crucial for sustaining and advancing these efforts.”
Dr. Zuckerman, a family medicine physician, pursued training in addiction medicine throughout medical school and graduate training, and has recently met the requirements for board certification in addiction medicine. Her motivation to improve the addiction treatment experience stemmed from her father’s personal battle with an opioid addiction, which tragically claimed his life when she was 20. She is also fellowship-trained in obstetrics and has a passion for caring for pregnant individuals with SUD.
Before joining Comprehensive Healthcare, Dr. Zuckerman was as a faculty member at the Community Health of Central Washington and Central Washington Family Medicine residency program, where she provided primary care, obstetric care and held the position of medical director of the suboxone clinic.
The addition of Dr. Zuckerman supports Comprehensive Healthcare’s initiative to grow its substance use disorder services as part of its ongoing efforts as a Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) demonstration grant recipient. This initiative also aligns with Washington state’s path toward statewide implementation of the CCBHC model, which will require participating providers to offer comprehensive substance use disorder care alongside behavioral health services.
For more information about Comprehensive Healthcare and its substance use disorder services, visit https://comphc.org/.
About Comprehensive Healthcare:
As one of largest behavioral health organizations in the state of Washington, Comprehensive Healthcare serves clients in the Greater Columbia Region. Comprehensive Healthcare is a Joint Commission accredited organization, providing compassionate, individualized behavioral healthcare since 1972. As a non-profit organization, Comprehensive Healthcare is dedicated to delivering high quality, evidence-based services to individuals, families and organizations. To learn more, visit Comprehensive Healthcare’s website at comphc.org.
Media Contacts:
Cassidy Brown
Comprehensive Healthcare
(509) 317-2876
cassidy.brown@comphc.org
McKenzie Morgan
mckenzie@firmani.com
