Documenting Mark’s admission to a drug rehabilitation facility (within the past few days) for future reference.
Over the past few weeks, we’ve been seeing posts on Facebook calling on Mark’s family to intervene as he has been disturbing the community. For context, Mark is my first cousin. His mother resides in the UK, and while his father is around, they have an estranged relationship.
My sister reached out to his mother, who then reached out to me for help. I also have an estranged relationship with his father, but his mother has always been kind to us, so it was difficult to refuse.
I was able to secure an appointment at Dr. Arias’s clinic for Tuesday morning. Mark said he was going to come to Dumaguete on Monday night. Unfortunately, he got into an altercation on Sunday afternoon and was apprehended by the police. I had to call the police investigator on Monday because they were going to release him since no one filed a case. We were hesitant about releasing him, as he might not come to Dumaguete for his appointment. We requested the police to detain him until Tuesday. I spoke to his father, explaining that he needed to get a referral from the local doctor for Dr. Arias and also arrange transport for him the next day. Unfortunately, the police wouldn’t have custody the moment they released him, and the responsibility would fall on the next of kin.
I had to call Dr. Arias’s clinic, and his secretary referred me to Rapha Home Care Center in Candau-ay. I was able to reach out to Judah, one of their caretakers. Rapha is a facility that caters to drug addicts. Dr. Arias is one of the doctors with whom they are affiliated. One of their services is to pick up patients who are not willing to be rehabilitated, which was perfect. I was beginning to worry that if I had to accompany Mark to the clinic the next day, he might run. I was starting to believe that he wouldn’t agree that he needed to be admitted to a rehabilitation facility. Rapha charges ₱5,000.00 (five thousand pesos) for the pickup from Tayasan, and their monthly fee is ₱30,000.00.
So I had to call his father and set up the pickup. I gave the facility’s contact number to his mother and father so they could coordinate. He was picked up late in the afternoon, and they arrived at the facility around 10 PM. We had to drive to the facility as soon as they arrived, as I had to make the payment since his mother sent me the money. We also had to bring some essentials for him, such as a pillow and blanket. The next day, we had to visit the facility again to bring his other needs—food and toiletries.
Right now, we’re finally able to breathe, as he’s finally safe at the facility. He’s not allowed to talk to family and friends for the next few weeks. The facility is also coordinating with Dr. Arias for his medications. He’s also been given a daily dose of quetiapine (25 mg). There are times when he is violent, but he is mostly calm.
Anyhow, that’s one of the highlights of my past few days.
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