the new laguna honda hospital and rehabilitation center, which is the most modern, green, and technologically sophisticated hospital of its kind in the united states. thank you to dianne feinstein, who made it a priority, and to the city attorney who championed and continues to champion this project. many thanks are owed two majors -- to mayors jordan, brown, and newsom, and thank you to mr. elsbernd. we should all acknowledge the leadership of the late john neely and the chief nursing officer who moved the hospital into the 20th century. thank you to the staff of laguna honda hospital who are creating a new care model of community and patient involvement.

the hospital has long been recognized as a center of excellence. the new facility further advances recommendation. the design brings a small-town feel insecure community which can integrate the patients and residents into the broader civic life of semblances go. the hospital has an impressive collection of art that will not only contribute to the healing environment but also provide a new destination for art lovers. the historic passage of comprehensive health care reform by college represents -- by congress strengthens medicare and ensure sustainability for years to come. it improves benefits for seniors and makes prescription drugs more affordable, and it recognizes the needs of those with disabilities by making significant investments in long- term care services. this is a great day not only for

the patients and residents of for all san francisco. thank you for this opportunity to extend my deepest gratitude to the hard-working people who have made this new hospital and rehabilitation center possible. please accept my best wishes for a memorable celebration. sincerely, nancy pelosi, speaker of the house. [applause] >> i want to acknowledge the assemblywoman who could not attend. her good wishes are extended. i also want to say as part of thinking about louise's role -- sell resilience reject sal sorelli mention sharing the campaign with louise and i. you really did it with us.

labour has always been our friend in the department of public health. we do great things together. that was an amazing victory. thank you for that. the saddest day that i have ever had was the day john died. it was very hard for me. i had never lost anybody who was actively working for me at the time. at one time i had to face the tremendous personal sadness that i felt that losing a friend of mine and i also had to recognize that like any leader of an organization and had to help the organization to get over its in the sense of processing its own feelings, staying true to its job while we were all in morning. laguna honda is a vibrant 24- hour seven day a week operation.

you could not stop life to mourn for john. we also had to keep laguna honda running. but at the same time so many of us were bereft of having lost to john. and having to deal with that was extremely challenging. i have a picture of john next to my desk. i will always remember him and his commitment. part of what i had to figure out on that day immediately was what was in charge of laguna right now. that is how things are. it was a sudden death. we were not at all prepared. but even at that moment, someone had to be in charge of laguna honda. you cannot have a hospital running without a license administrator in charge. i chose someone i have tremendous faith and, and also somebody that john had tremendous faith in.

and i know that it was always intended. john had intended that succession. but it was not obviously going to be in the way it happened. it was going to be in a number of years. she would have had a chance to mentor into that role. people would have gotten used to her. when he felt we were taking care of he would have moved on. that was his way. instead, she was suddenly catapulted into this job in a much more difficult circumstance than anyone imagined, at a time when everybody was morning. the building was not yet finished. there were a number of challenges. but she rose to all of them. and what she has in common with john is that she wakes up and sees what is in the best

interest of the residence. that is what we do this for. it is on that that every decision should be changed. she keeps that foremost in her mind. she has done a fantastic job. i am sure that in that laguna honda corner of heaven, and john is looking down very proudly at her. [applause] >> good afternoon, everyone. thank you for spending your saturday afternoon at laguna honda. at the new laguna honda. san francisco has much to be proud of. laguna honda has been providing compassionate care for san francisco hit safety net for over 150 years. we will continue this tradition for the next 150 years to come.

second, the new laguna honda, as the most modern rehab and skilled nursing facility in the first certified leed hospital in california, we will deliver on being a model for other facilities around the country and the world in long-term care and rehabilitation care. and most importantly, laguna honda is a community for healing and wellness. you will see this for yourselves as you speak to our staff. thank you, mayor knew some, -- may newsom, mayor brown, jackie speare, the former president of the health commission when prop. 8 past, the health commission, turner construction, derek

miller, the arts commission, the staff of laguna honda, our labor partners, and the entire san francisco community for your support in ensuring laguna honda has a bright future. [applause] i will end with a "from a resident of laguna honda. thank you to the citizens of san francisco for backing this wonderful dream you had, and thank you to the many residents who actively supported the dream. thank you. [applause] >> appropriately, the person who will have the final word on today's ceremony is our

president of our resident counsel, elizabeth cutler. we are so proud you are here and we are looking forward to your comments. >> i have to unfold my papers. please be patient with me. all of the patients know what i mean. thank you. i want to say is an honor to share this platform with so many accomplished people. i feel thrilled to be among you and to speak to this assembly today. more than that, it is a joy to represent the residents. i am thrilled that you have allowed me to be a voice for some of their feelings and concerns.

and i want to tell you a bit about us as residents. we came from all different walks of life in the city. we have had jobs having to do with construction and bus driving, and we have had white collar jobs, and we have been independent artists and writers. the full spectrum have come to laguna honda. and in our day we were great participants in all of the city life. difficult circumstances, sometimes crushingly difficult, have brought many of us here at last to laguna honda. not at last for some of us. despite all differences, we need the healing that laguna honda is famous for.

some people who come will be rehabilitated and will leave sunday. others will need 24-hour care for the rest of their lives, and so they will look forward to spending time in the spending -- in this building for years to come. it is exciting to have a new building. it is even more exciting to receive a new model of care, care that is resident centered, care that honors each person as an individual instead of a body in a bed. care that involves talking to us, and more important, listening to us, hearing our voices. so many have worked so hard, has you have been told -- as you have been told, to bring the state to pass. and now we have a dazzling new setting to present to you. when you leave today, you will be going home.

but laguna honda residents will not be leaving. this is our home. and it is very important to us. we are already here. but please come back and visit us frequently. this wonderful new laguna honda would not exist without you. i just want to add a personal note. my younger sister, emily, was a resident here for many more years than i have been. she was greatly loved. we lost her recently. i would like to dedicate this speech to her and remembered her, as many of the residents do, with great fondness and affection. thank you all. [applause]

>> i would like to invite you all nowi that good enough? this is a participatory ribbon cutting. it requires nothing more complicated than this. i will ask you to count down, not up. upon conclusion, we will applaud the great works of turner construction, the dedicated men and women who are still toiling inside to get this project completed, which begs the question when will the residents be moving in that? there is an easy answer -- soon. [laughter] [crowd chants a countdown]

[applause] go ahead in an orderly manner.

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hello, i'm ivette torres and welcome to another edition of the road to recovery. today we'll be talking about treating addiction among our nation's youth. joining us in our panel today are frances harding, director, center for substance abuse prevention, substance abuse and mental health services administration, u.s. department of health and human services, rockville, maryland; monique bourgeois, executive director, association of recovery schools, fort washington, pennsylvania; greg williams, co-director, connecticut turning to youth and families, danbury, connecticut; dr. mark godley, director, research and development, chestnut health systems, bloomington, illinois.

fran, what is the extent of the problem with youth in america? our most recent survey from samhsa is that around 10 million, a little over 10 million of our young people, are using alcohol and substances. that actually breaks down to 26 percent of them are drinking and another 17 percent of them are binge drinking, which is having more than five drinks in a row at one setting. so it's a concern of ours that our young people are really starting to accelerate drinking and drugging than they have in the past. and mark, it's really...as fran has mentioned, alcohol is really the main problem. what other substances are youth taking today? while most youth who use, do use alcohol, marijuana runs a pretty close second with high use in marijuana.

but probably the most rapidly growing segment of new use is in the prescription drug area with high increasing numbers of new users coming into the system who've used prescription drugs and normally getting it from a relative or from friends. and inhalants may be a problem as well? inhalants is a problem at younger ages more so than at the older ages. we see a higher use of inhalants with the 13- to 17-year-olds than with the 18- to 24-year-old. and the challenge with inhalants is that they're more readily available. they're in the homes, so. gateway-type drug to using other things, eventually. monique, what are some of the factors that really place a youth at risk? well i think factors that place the youth at risk

for using substances include underlying mental health issues. i think that environmental factors play an important role if they're in a community that is highly supportive of use. maybe at home there's using going on. i think that those are some really big contributing factors. and greg, why should we be concerned in america with all of these issues with youth? well i think the biggest thing is people don't generally realize all the different areas that are impacted by young people using drugs and alcohol, you know. if you look at, you know, in my life, you know, you talk about the hospitalizations, the criminal stuff, all the different areas in my life that were impacted as a result of my alcohol and drug use. so it wasn't just that i was putting myself at risk but i was putting other people at risk and i was causing, you know, impacts in different areas of society. for our audience, give them an idea of how you

ran into trouble with substances. you know, when i was about 13 or 14, you know, i experienced with alcohol, you know, and when i first drank, it helped me to, you know, feel accepted. it helped me to feel a part of, you know, and i had a lot of fear and anxiety and acceptance issues growing up, and, you know, alcohol did change that for me. and then quickly it became, you know, marijuana because it was easier to obtain than alcohol, you know. i mean it was parents' cabinets, things like that, you know, early on and i progressed pretty quickly, you know. i liked drinking and drugging and i liked the feeling and, you know, so i embraced it, you know. how did you get help? i ultimately received help through family support. my family got very concerned when i was 16 and 17 and i started to do a lot more risky behaviors with using heavier pharmaceutical drugs and opiates and they started to see a lot of

consequences through car accidents and school, you know, issues and, you know, i used to do athletics and i wasn't doing athletics anymore and, you know, so it was really my family who pushed me to the direction of, you know, putting me first into an outpatient program and then subsequently into an inpatient treatment setting after a car accident. and fran, isn't this typical is that the parents sometimes don't even have a clue? can you talk a little bit about what parents need to be looking out for. one thing that parents should know better watching today is that you are a huge influence on young people's behavior, not only while they were pushing you to get into treatment but to prevent a younger person from getting into trouble to begin with. and we teach parents to look out for signs, some of what you've already mentioned. you were an athlete and then you went away from that.

usually you will see, parents should see, signs if they have a group of friends that they've been hanging around with since they were 10 years old and then all of a sudden, 15, 16, they have a whole new group of friends. we teach parents to go into the bedrooms and to look around and see the signs of what's changed in the room and what becomes more important, and mostly listen to what they're talking about, who they're talking with, how secretive they become with their computers, all of these things contribute to triggers that a possible problem...may not be alcohol, may not be drugs but there is a problem brewing here that will ultimately turn into something that's dangerous. monitoring is huge for parents. to know the whereabouts of your young person, who they hang out with, what they do in their free time, that's extremely important, but as greg sort of alluded to as well, the thing about

parents is they're the first teachers that a child has. they're the role models, they're the teachers and so one of the things we tell parents is that if you use, stop using in the house, you know, if you drink, don't drink in the house; don't keep alcohol in the house and don't drink because you're a role model now. and if you suspect that your adolescent is having issues, they will do as you do as well. so take care about your own use. and that doesn't always sit well but it's a pretty important step to take at times. also, getting involved in their adolescents' activities, knowing what their extracurriculars are and being a part of that, monitoring homework so that you're on top of that. you don't have to do the homework with them or do it for them, for heaven sakes, but to be a part of it and to make sure it's happening and then and so finally is what we see in treatment settings over time is that with their families in treatment is

is that the interactions have become characterized by negative, you know, interactions too often and so slowly beginning to flip it toward more positive, finding more positive things to interact about is just huge, so increase positive communication. but mark, in a way, for some individuals and some families, and correct me if i'm wrong, people can also teach their children to use alcohol moderately at the right age when they, you know, when it's legal because i think the majority of people are going to probably say well, you know what, i'm an adult; i have an opportunity to have wine with dinner, you know. and so for the homes where people have that kind of a perspective, what type of message should they be sending, monique? well, i think that it's important that people are

educated on adolescent brain development and knowing that at a certain age the brain is fully developed, up near 25, and so the younger a child starts using, the greater the likelihood that they're going to become dependent. and so i think keeping that information in mind and helping parents understand that it's really important that delaying onset of use is really going to produce the best results for that student. and that, you know, at an appropriate age and appropriate time it is okay to, you know, partake in something that is legal. with moderation, correct greg? yeah. i mean, i think the biggest thing, you know, something fran alluded to, i mean, is sometimes as a society we don't acknowledge that drugs or alcohol happening in our house or we don't acknowledge it's happening in our school. and i think that statistics say otherwise, that your adolescent is going to be experiencing drugs and alcohol and they're going to be exposed to it at some way, shape or form and so,

you know, there's a lot of families who don't accept that, you know, statement, and it's families that can accept that and say, okay, what are we going to do about it now; my child's going to be exposed to this. do we want to have an open environment at home where we're talking openly about it or do we want to have this punitive push it under the rug, let's not talk about it? but as soon as something bad happens, we're going to punish them so, you know, there's a lot of people who talk about, you know, having a safety phone call, you know, for an adolescent where if a young person is out at a party or something, they have a non-punitive way to call their family and come get a ride if they're in trouble, you know. and they know that they're not going to get in trouble and it's usually that fear. for me, it was the same thing. it was, you know, i didn't want to tell my family what i was doing because of the fear of being grounded or for them to worry about me. but it's like changing that paradigm about, you know, that if we talk openly about this, it becomes a much more environment where people

can seek help easier. and when we come back, i want to pick up, fran, on the risk and protective factors that we need our audience to know. we'll be right back. [music] youth are not unlike any other substance user or person with addiction. i think the difference is is how important peers are for those individuals. kids are so dependent on their peers for how they think, how they do social engagement. it's really important that they have a set of peers that don't drink, don't take, don't use, that they can look to for the support that they need. i think sometimes we think of substance abusers as not being able to recover until they've been through a long, long, long period of addiction. and i think what we're realizing is that kids do recover.

we have lots of examples of young people who are 16 and 17 and 18 who've been sober, clean and sober for 2 or 3 years as they've realized what that's going to mean to their lives. so those kinds of supports are important to them as well. we know that a young person's brain is still maturing, still developing. it's harder for a young person to control their impulses. it's harder for a young person to avoid, especially a young male's sensation-seeking activities. they are also more tune to the demands of their peer group. so they're more likely to make impulsive decisions and all of those things affect recovery and sobriety. people who suffer from drug or alcohol addiction sometimes say hurtful things. they drive the people who love them most away. if you know someone who suffers from drug or alcohol addiction, listen; try to hear what they are really saying; know that there is hope and help