We are proud to publicly announce Molly Ashcroft, CADC, as Executive Director of Innovo Detox. With an extensive background working in the field of addiction treatment and recovery, Molly is uniquely positioned to lead the Innovo Detox staff as the premier provider of detox and medical stabilization services in the Mid-Atlantic area for those suffering from addiction, substance use disorder, and co-occurring disorders.
Born and raised in Connecticut, Molly Ashcroft first found personal recovery from addiction before entering the field of addiction treatment. Initially, Molly worked for a non-profit sober living and recovery house organization in New England, overseeing client care, peer support, and day-to-day business operations. Next, Molly held the position of Director of Admissions and Business Development for extended care and structured sober living for young adult men in Westport, Connecticut that focused on clients suffering from addiction, mental health, and failure-to-launch issues. During her time there, Molly also worked in operations between the organization’s intensive outpatient (IOP) treatment program and the integrated clinical programming at the structured recovery residences. Prior to her new position as Executive Director at Innovo Detox, Molly worked for Maryland Addiction Recovery Center, a long-term extended care program as well as IOP provider in Towson, Maryland. In her position as Corporate Director of Admissions and Development, Molly supervised the admissions and business development teams at MARC, as well worked internally on systems implementation and management with the executive, clinical and medical leadership at MARC. Throughout her time in the addiction treatment field, Molly also has worked with clients independently as an interventionist and case manager.
“It is absolutely essential that addiction treatment programs are led by creative, dynamic, innovative leaders,” said Innovo Detox Co-Founder and Director of Business Development Zach Snitzer. “Molly Ashcroft’s experience, coupled with her passion, desire, and strength of character, is exactly what we were looking for when we were deciding on who would fill the role of Executive Director here at Innovo Detox.”
Innovo Detox, a long-term vision by ownership looking to fill the need for standalone detox and medical stabilization services in the Mid-Atlantic area, opened its doors right as the COVID-19 global health pandemic was shutting down the country. Certainly not the circumstances one would describe as ideal. However, we know that America’s addiction epidemic was ongoing long before the coronavirus pandemic impacted our daily lives, and high-quality detox and addiction treatment services will be needed now more than ever.
An unprecedented circumstance offered a difficult challenge for a new Executive Director of a brand-new treatment program, but also an excellent opportunity for Molly in her new role. For any new organization, implementation of policies and procedures, operational initiatives, onboarding staff, and engagement with vendors can be difficult. However, it was all the more difficult to do so during a global health pandemic. Just as expected, Molly Ashcroft rose to the challenge.
In her own words:
“Just slightly over 8 weeks ago, 2 weeks before opening the doors of Innovo Detox in Pennsylvania, we onboarded 30 plus staff members and had them go through an intensive all staff training over the course of two weeks. My main goal of this training, aside from the obvious typical training of job functions, was to bring the team together, take a moment to appreciate the inception of something new, and to make sure we were all taking risks throughout the training just as our patients will do each time they step foot into our facility. Our patients are overwhelmed with fear and uncertainty and trepidation, and I wanted the staff to feel a little bit of that in order to identify the big leap of faith each patient goes through. Throughout my life, I have never reaped a reward without taking a risk, so it was important for me to be authentic, and to show my vulnerable self to the new team here so they could also do the same with me and their coworkers. We took time to share with each other what our workplaces had looked like in the past, what we liked, what we thought needed to change, and what sense of self we were carrying into our new roles. We covered everything from the natural fears of being in a new environment and working for a new organization, to the excitement of a new challenge, to the overall connection that they were yearning to create amongst our new team. Over the course of the two-week training, what I was able to see throughout each activity and moment spent with the staff was the evolution of connection. I watched the forming of trust. From my previous life experiences, it has always been true that the opposite of addiction is connection and for any person to thrive in life, connection is inherently important. Each time an employee shared a little bit about themselves, their fears and their truth, the group became a little bit stronger and a little bit more united. When treating addiction, alcoholism, substance abuse, or chemical dependency, it is vital that a team stands united for the patient to then feel supported. That then allows the patient to trust the professional staff with their treatment. I believe this begins with leadership and the ability of leadership to project that onto the staff at large. If the staff feel supported then they are even more deliberate in their support of each other and, ultimately, our patients and their families. The beauty of this experience was that each employee, including myself, stepped into something brand new, together, which naturally provided a level of camaraderie that could not have been duplicated. We were able to truly become a team, united in our vision and goal of providing the best possible care to our patients.
I am extremely excited and proud to be sitting as the Executive Director of Innovo Detox,” states Molly Ashcroft. “Our facility is a standalone detox that opened on March 16th. We offer vital, lifesaving, life-sustaining detox and medical stabilization services and help patients begin their journey of recovery. You all may be reading this and thinking to yourselves what a challenging time to open a detox facility or any new organization for that matter. A global pandemic is certainly not the ideal time to be opening a new organization. If I am to be authentic and truthful, I was also feeling the same way. Stepping into a new role, for a brand-new organization, just as the world was starting to brace for one of the largest pandemics we most likely will ever experience. The next thought I had was of our communities, our country, and the world as a whole. That the coronavirus pandemic will become provide a terrible breeding ground for isolation, for substance abuse, for alcohol abuse, and for overall mental health disorders to surface or resurface among our society at large. It was certainly unnerving, but this is what we do. It was without hesitation by ownership and staff to jump with both feet in and stand firm in our decision of opening up Innovo Detox as planned, in order to serve the patients that stood in need and will continue to be in need of our services. With that said, I could not be prouder of the work that my team has shown in the face of fear, and uncertainty to make sure that we are treating our patients with the utmost compassion and quality care they deserve. As someone is taking their first steps towards recovery, it is our job to leave our emotions and fears at the door in order to show up wholeheartedly for them during their most fearful hours. I could not be happier with how the team here at Innovo Detox has been able to do that without question and without hesitation. I feel inspired each day by our team of medical professionals, clinical professionals, and administrative staff that show up day in and day out to help those that are seeking a new way of life.”
Alcohol Detox in Pennsylvania
If you or someone you know needs help for addiction or co-occurring disorders, please give us a call. Innovo Detox offers the latest in evidence-based medical, psychiatric, and clinical care for those in need of detox and medical stabilization in Pennsylvania and the surrounding Mid-Atlantic area. If we aren’t the best fit for you or a loved one, we will take the necessary time to work with you to find a detox, rehab, treatment center or provider that better fits your needs. Please give us a call at (717) 619-3260 or email our team at info@innovodetox.com. For more information on our company or services, please visit our website at www.innovodetox.com.