Winnebago Industries® Specialty Vehicle Division Provides Commercial Vehicle Platforms Used For Six Mobile Opioid Units In Colorado to Fight the Addiction Crisis
Mobile medical units provide easier access to drug treatment and associated healthcare needs for several of the state's rural communities
DENVER, Oct. 28 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- As national opioid addiction rates rise in the wake of COVID-19, including in the state of Colorado, many organizations are looking for alternative treatment options. To address this need, Winnebago Industries® [NYSE: WGO] Specialty Vehicle Division, with vehicle upfitter Medical Coaches, has partnered with Signal Behavioral Health Network and West Slope Casa to deploy six mobile opioid clinics in twenty-five of Colorado's rural counties. Signal deployed five of the six vehicles, while West Slope Casa deployed one. Funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA), the mobile medical units are built with custom floor plans and use a quiet lithium-ion power battery system in place of traditional generators. The mobile clinics provide preventative care, screenings, chronic disease management, substance use disorders services, and behavioral therapy.
"Together with our State partners and service providers, we are able to bring critical treatment and outreach services to rural communities which have lacked substance use disorder service options, but have seen intense need," says Daniel Darting, CEO of Signal Behavioral Health Network.
The six units were built on a Winnebago 33-foot Class A commercial platform. The mobile units feature a small waiting area, counselor room, patient exam room and are staffed with a peer navigator, a certified addictions counselor, and a nurse, with the goal to serve 300 people each week. The mobile units serve a population of nearly one million in the regions surrounding the areas of Alamosa, Colorado Springs, Greeley, Steamboat Springs, Pueblo, Wheat Ridge, and many other towns.
"The need for mobile medical vehicles is constantly growing, and while mobile medical vehicles have been around for half a century, evolving technologies have enabled these vehicles to offer unprecedented levels of quality, technology and services. We are thrilled to see our vehicle platforms being used to combat the opioid crisis," says Robert Kim, Director of Winnebago Industries Specialty Vehicle Division. "Mobile services have grown in popularity in recent years because they truly enable healthcare providers to extend their reach and engage people in their environment. We are excited to see Signal's results as they engage in this new approach."
Winnebago Industries' Specialty Vehicle Division produces commercial vehicles that combine their legendary SuperStructure® construction with experienced craftsmen to provide the ideal platform for many end-use applications. Winnebago vehicle platforms are used by leading second-stage builders (known as upfitters), creating countless end applications. Most recently, the Specialty Vehicle platforms were used for an all-electric mobile preschool to Colorado's Vail Valley Foundation, a mobile opioid unit to Boston's Kraft Center of Community Health, seven mobile childhood advocacy centers to the New York Office of Child and Family Services, and the nation's first zero-emission mobile surgical instrument lab to the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) Health Center.
About Winnebago Industries
Winnebago Industries, Inc. is a leading North American manufacturer of outdoor lifestyle products and commercial vehicles under the Winnebago, Grand Design, Newmar and Chris-Craft brands, which are used primarily in leisure travel and outdoor recreation activities. The company builds quality motorhomes, travel trailers, fifth wheel products, boats, and commercial community outreach vehicles. Since the 1960s, its Specialty Vehicles division has leveraged the Winnebago motorhome platform to design and build custom community outreach vehicles for customers around the world. With flexible floorplans and chassis options to suit different budgets and sustainability goals, Winnebago commercial shells are ideal for applications such as mobile medical and dental services, DUI/BAT, cancer and preventive screenings, food trucks, event marketing, bloodmobiles, classrooms, bookmobiles, and many other applications. Winnebago Industries has multiple facilities in Iowa, Indiana, Minnesota, and Florida. The Company's common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and traded under the symbol WGO. For access to Winnebago Industries' investor relations material or to add your name to an automatic email list for Company news releases, visit http://investor.wgo.net.
For more information about Winnebago Specialty Vehicles, please visit https://winnebagoind.com/product-classes/specialty-vehicles or follow on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.
About Signal Behavioral Health Network
Signal Behavioral Health Network was founded in 1997 and has been Colorado's largest Managed Services Organization for the past two decades. Signal is responsible for managing and monitoring substance use treatment services in three of the seven regions in the state. Those regions include Denver-Metro, Northeastern, and Southeastern Colorado. Signal, working with local providers, offers a continuum of substance use disorder (SUD) services and seeks to ensure a consistent level of quality and ensure compliance with State and Federal requirements. Signal works with substance use disorder and mental health provider agencies who provide treatment, prevention, and recovery services to individuals and their families across the state of Colorado. Signal partners with the Colorado Office of Behavioral Health, 35 counties, several judicial districts, and other organizations across Colorado to manage delivery and expansion of effective substance use disorder services.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
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Sarah Malpeli
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SOURCE Winnebago Industries
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