June 15, 2023 • 13 mins
Brian Bailys, has been a Certified Public Accountant since 1983. In 1993, he formed The Bailys Group, a consulting firm, to provide tax and financial planning services. He has also been involved in many aspects of private equity, including investment analysis, due diligence, transaction structure, and negotiations. In 2015, Brian founded, Ascent, a continuing care solution for people in recovery from substance use disorders and mental health diagnoses. The genesis of the Ascent Solution was based on Brian’s experience in treatment. Ascent began by combining an evidence based mobile app with 24/7/365 peer recovery coaching and in 2017 began to expand into “live” face to face peer recovery coaching. Thus evolved ThriveED (Thrive Emergency Department FKA AscentED) where peer coaches began providing round the clock peer recovery support to individuals in the MetroHealth (Cleveland, OH) emergency department. In early 2018, Brian formed a partnership with Thrive Behavioral Health/Thrive Peer Support. This has allowed Thrive to provide peer support to Medicaid eligible patients across NE Ohio and serve as advocates on behalf of those recovery. Brian has spoken on various opiate and recovery related panels and been a part of multiple opiate and behavioral health task forces in Ohio. Brian advocates for the individual in recovery and their families. Brian is the father of 3 grown children and grandfather of 5.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:01):
This is CEOs you should know OniHeartRadio, I'm Keith Hotchkiss and on today's
show we talk about addiction, specificallyhow a unique approach to the treatment of
addiction can help society can save lives. Our guest today is Brian Bayliss,
CEO of Thrive Peer Recovery Resources.So, Brian, the addiction conversation has
(00:22):
been in the news so much inthe past really twenty thirty years. It's
come out of the shadows. Rightthere was alcohol addiction, and then opioids,
prescription painkillers, now gambling addiction inOhio is a thing. Can you
talk a little bit about how boththe stigma of addiction drives your business and
(00:43):
how you have the need has grownover the last few years. Can you
talk a little bit about that.Sure, Thank you for having me.
Sure. Unfortunately, the addiction problemis getting much worse. We're seeing the
advent of Fenton All. We havea much bigger problem than we used to
(01:03):
and it's you know, addiction coupledwith mental health. You know, we
have one in five people today havea mental health diagnosis. So that problem
is becoming much worse. In termsof the stigma. There's still a stigma.
Although we have a lot of conversation, a lot more conversation about mental
(01:26):
health and substance use disorder, there'sstill a stigma. People are afraid to
admit that they have a problem.They're concerned about what potential implications they may
have. Right, Can you talka little bit about why it has gotten
so? Is it more in thenews because more people are talking about it,
(01:47):
or was there always this undercurrent ofaddiction that sort of lived in the
shadows, or is it really gettingworse for people as a society as a
whole over the last ten years.It's a combination of both. It's definitely
more in the media then it usedto be, but the problem is getting
much worse. You know, wherewe had a problem with heroin, now
(02:07):
the problem is with fentanyl. Imean there's really very little heroin that doesn't
have fetenyl. And now the problemis even greater because it's not just heroin,
it's cocaine. It's all sorts ofstreet drugs that are now based with
fentanyl. Where in the process doyou come in your thrive peer recovery resources?
(02:32):
Right, And this is a typeof addiction treatment that you offer.
Talk a little bit about what youoffer, where you find people? How
do you how do people come toyou and and and start get started if
they have if they feel like theyhave an addiction problem. Sure so Thrive
Peer Recovery Services offers peer recovery servicesfor people with mental health and substance use
(02:57):
disorder. A peer is individual inrecovery. So our individuals that work with
us have one year in recovery fromeither a mental health diagnosis, substance use
disorder, or both. It's ahuge challenging job, I would really really
difficult. And these are individuals thatagain have survived, you know, their
(03:21):
own addiction and want to help somebodyelse. You know, it's a wonderful
career. And I'll talk a littlebit more about that, but you know,
it's an opportunity for somebody to pullsomebody else out of the gut or
when they had that and they werepulled out. Right. So someone is
a peer, right? Is thisis this they're they're sort of almost They're
(03:43):
different though than like what we mightconsider like an AA sponsor. Right,
Can you talk a little bit aboutthe difference here between a peer and the
sponsor how most people might identify withit? Sure So, The job of
a sponsor is to take you throughthis twelve steps of a program. The
job of a peer is to supportyou back to a life of independence.
(04:03):
So you may have some particular needsfor resources. They're going to help you
link you know, to those particularresources. Maybe you need to apply for
Medicaid, maybe you want to goback to school to get your ged,
you know a number of different resources, and again the goal is to help
that person back to a life ofindependence. We're talking with Brian Baylis.
(04:25):
He's the CEO of Thrive Peer RecoveryResources. Certainly doing important work. You
mentioned how challenging the work is,how difficult and also at the same time,
how rewarding it might be right tohelp people. How do folks find
your company? How do they becomepeers? How do they enter into treatment?
(04:48):
Can you talk a little bit aboutthe process. Sure, so,
you could find us on our websiteat Thrive Peer Recovery Services dot com or
Thrive Peer Recovery dot com. Andin terms of individuals that would like to
be employed, I can tell youthat the demand for our services far outweighs
(05:10):
the supply. We are always recruitingand looking for individuals that want to make
a difference. Doesn't matter what yourbackground is. You know, most of
the people that work for Thrive havesome criminal or justice involved background. You
know, we're happy to have youhelp and try to make a difference.
(05:32):
Do you need to have had anofficial diagnosis of substance abuse or be in
recovery to be an actual peer likesomeone who maybe just knows the problem continues
to grow and wants to be helpa helper. There can you do that?
So the state is actually loosen thatup a little bit. That's a
(05:53):
great question. So you don't haveto be but you need to really have
a family member, um, thatwas potentially involved in you know, and
have a need. So that's whowe're looking to hire is people that have
had some involvement in the process.Once UM, someone successfully is I guess
(06:14):
recovered from your program, where dothey Where do they go? Do they
go back to work? Uh?You know? Do they do? They
have homes and families? They're like, what's the next step right after that?
Well, you're never recovered recoveries fora lifetime. And you know,
I can tell you based on myown experience, UM, And what we
try to do is we try toget people to support that they need.
(06:38):
We try to make sure that theyhave you know, housing and medical care
and uh and employment, right,I mean those are critical. You know,
those social determinants of health are criticalto a person's recovery. So you
know, if they want to havea full recovery, we have to help
support them to get there. So, yes, most of the people,
(07:00):
after they've worked with our program,we want to make sure that there's you
know, they have a good transitionback to a life of independence. Right.
Are there companies that I mean,we know that there are labor shortages,
people who there's a need for skilledlaborers and unskilled laborers these days.
(07:20):
Our companies willing to take a lookat someone who's come through recovery and thrive
peer recovery. Absolutely. You know, there's a number of different companies that
are out, you know to helpindividuals that could use some support. And
so I think we're very fortunate inCleveland that our number of companies are willing
to give people, you know,an opportunity and we you know, one
(07:43):
of the things that I'm most proudof is we've hired a number of people
that have gone through our program.They've now become peer supporters. So that's,
you know, pretty cool, that'sfantastic. Do you are you comfortable
talking about your experience? Sure?Can you tell us? You know,
you can share as much as littleas you like. But I think you
know, having someone who's the CEOof this recovery company, Now, if
(08:07):
someone's listening and needs help or knowssomeone that needs help, you're not alone,
right, And how did you cometo the program? How did it
happen for you? About nine yearsago, I had a very bad relapse
on alcohol and that was coupled withfabilitating depression and really bad anxiety, and
I bounced around treatment and ended upin what's called a partial hospitalization program.
(08:31):
So I was in treatment, youknow, four days a week, three
four days a week, four hoursat a time. In that program with
me, there were seven other peoplejust like me. A big difference between
me and them was socioeconomic, butreally some amazing people. And I was
in really bad shape at the time, and you know, the program was
(08:52):
extremely helpful. But there was apeer in that room, somebody just liked
me that really helped me get mysmile back, helped me get my confidence
back. Unfortunately, six of theseven of those people relapsed within ninety days,
and I know two passed away,and I wasn't ready to go back
to work. I'm a business guy, you know, I had my own
consulting practice, and I said,there's got to be a better way.
(09:13):
And so I talked to some expertsin the sector and they told me that
the real gap in treatment is continuingcare. What do people do after they
get out of treatment. So along story short, amazing company called New
Directions helped us get launched financially andwith resources. The first model that we
(09:37):
built was a mobile app and youcould call somebody and have virtual peer support.
This is such an incredible story,Brian. I mean, when you
think about you were a victim,I guess I don't know if that's the
right word of addiction. You fellinto that path and knew that once you
(09:58):
got out of that, you hadyou had the ability to sort of start
this company, right, with thehelp of some others, right, And
so now you're giving back in yourown way. And it's got to be
both again rewarding and extremely challenging.How can someone you said, you mentioned
getting to the website and what awhat's the type of commitment. Can you
(10:18):
people do this as a part time? Can people be peers as part time?
Can they do it? Um?On the side, And I'm just
curious how we can help more people. We we strongly encourage full time.
Um, you can work part time, but it's twenty hours a week.
But again, we like the peopleto have full time so that we can
have continuity of care for the individualsthat we serve. Yeah, you know,
(10:41):
it's it's really important that we tryto have the same person for them.
UM, so that you know,there's a lot of trust tissues initially,
so that's you know, critically important. So the need for peers to
help folks out of addiction has neverbeen greater. Thrive Peer Recovery Resources is
(11:03):
a company and I guess an organizationthat is helping doing incredible work in our
community to help folks who are inthe deepest, darkest depression or despair,
right and they come out of thegutter, as you said, and they
can become a productive member of society. That has to feel good. So
if folks are looking for an employmentopportunity, I think that's something they should
(11:26):
they should consider. So one ofthe things we talk about on CEOs.
You should know is how folks withhigh stress jobs, and boy, I
can't imagine a job more stressful thanyours, right, because it's a lot
of responsibility on your shoulders. Howdo you center yourself these days? How
do you decompress or find you know, your sort of peace? Well,
(11:48):
a couple of ways. First ofall, I'm part of an amazing team,
and so it's not that it's notyou know, there's stress in the
job, but there are so manywonderful people that I get to work with
that really help support support the organization. But I work out every morning,
you know, religiously, very good. And then I am a member of
(12:11):
AA I go to five meetings aweek. You know. That helps me
from a spiritual perspective. You know, I have the opportunity to sponsor individuals,
so it gives me a chance toto give back a little bit.
I play with my grandchildren a lot. Wow, I get to do that.
That's the coolest part, right,you know, absolutely, I mean,
(12:35):
wow, congratulations. Look again,I feel like the folks and so
many people in our society that arehelping people, nurses, teachers, police
officers, were they're so underappreciated.These days and the work you're doing to
help, you know, good peoplewho fell into a bad situation. I
(12:56):
think that's incredible and I think youshould really proud of the work you're doing.
So congratulations, thank you for that. And I have to say,
you know, it's really our peersupporters are the people that are on the
ground that are really making a difference, and you know, they do such
a fantastic job and I just love, you know, some of the amazing
work that they do and some ofthe amazing stories. And unfortunately they're not
(13:18):
all amazing stories, you know,it's which makes it even more challenging.
So if you've life what you heardand you think you can help to become
a peer, thrive Peer Recovery Servicesdot com and hopefully this podcast inspired some
of you to either seek treatment orhelp others. Thanks Brian, appreciate your
(13:39):
time. Thank you, and thishas been IHR Radio CEOs. You should
know today's show was produced by BobCoats and I'm Keith Hoskiss. Let's see
you next time.
This is CEOs you should know OniHeartRadio, I'm Keith Hotchkiss and on today's
show we talk about addiction, specificallyhow a unique approach to the treatment of
addiction can help society can save lives. Our guest today is Brian Bayliss,
CEO of Thrive Peer Recovery Resources.So, Brian, the addiction conversation has
(00:22):
been in the news so much inthe past really twenty thirty years. It's
come out of the shadows. Rightthere was alcohol addiction, and then opioids,
prescription painkillers, now gambling addiction inOhio is a thing. Can you
talk a little bit about how boththe stigma of addiction drives your business and
(00:43):
how you have the need has grownover the last few years. Can you
talk a little bit about that.Sure, Thank you for having me.
Sure. Unfortunately, the addiction problemis getting much worse. We're seeing the
advent of Fenton All. We havea much bigger problem than we used to
(01:03):
and it's you know, addiction coupledwith mental health. You know, we
have one in five people today havea mental health diagnosis. So that problem
is becoming much worse. In termsof the stigma. There's still a stigma.
Although we have a lot of conversation, a lot more conversation about mental
(01:26):
health and substance use disorder, there'sstill a stigma. People are afraid to
admit that they have a problem.They're concerned about what potential implications they may
have. Right, Can you talka little bit about why it has gotten
so? Is it more in thenews because more people are talking about it,
(01:47):
or was there always this undercurrent ofaddiction that sort of lived in the
shadows, or is it really gettingworse for people as a society as a
whole over the last ten years.It's a combination of both. It's definitely
more in the media then it usedto be, but the problem is getting
much worse. You know, wherewe had a problem with heroin, now
(02:07):
the problem is with fentanyl. Imean there's really very little heroin that doesn't
have fetenyl. And now the problemis even greater because it's not just heroin,
it's cocaine. It's all sorts ofstreet drugs that are now based with
fentanyl. Where in the process doyou come in your thrive peer recovery resources?
(02:32):
Right, And this is a typeof addiction treatment that you offer.
Talk a little bit about what youoffer, where you find people? How
do you how do people come toyou and and and start get started if
they have if they feel like theyhave an addiction problem. Sure so Thrive
Peer Recovery Services offers peer recovery servicesfor people with mental health and substance use
(02:57):
disorder. A peer is individual inrecovery. So our individuals that work with
us have one year in recovery fromeither a mental health diagnosis, substance use
disorder, or both. It's ahuge challenging job, I would really really
difficult. And these are individuals thatagain have survived, you know, their
(03:21):
own addiction and want to help somebodyelse. You know, it's a wonderful
career. And I'll talk a littlebit more about that, but you know,
it's an opportunity for somebody to pullsomebody else out of the gut or
when they had that and they werepulled out. Right. So someone is
a peer, right? Is thisis this they're they're sort of almost They're
(03:43):
different though than like what we mightconsider like an AA sponsor. Right,
Can you talk a little bit aboutthe difference here between a peer and the
sponsor how most people might identify withit? Sure So, The job of
a sponsor is to take you throughthis twelve steps of a program. The
job of a peer is to supportyou back to a life of independence.
(04:03):
So you may have some particular needsfor resources. They're going to help you
link you know, to those particularresources. Maybe you need to apply for
Medicaid, maybe you want to goback to school to get your ged,
you know a number of different resources, and again the goal is to help
that person back to a life ofindependence. We're talking with Brian Baylis.
(04:25):
He's the CEO of Thrive Peer RecoveryResources. Certainly doing important work. You
mentioned how challenging the work is,how difficult and also at the same time,
how rewarding it might be right tohelp people. How do folks find
your company? How do they becomepeers? How do they enter into treatment?
(04:48):
Can you talk a little bit aboutthe process. Sure, so,
you could find us on our websiteat Thrive Peer Recovery Services dot com or
Thrive Peer Recovery dot com. Andin terms of individuals that would like to
be employed, I can tell youthat the demand for our services far outweighs
(05:10):
the supply. We are always recruitingand looking for individuals that want to make
a difference. Doesn't matter what yourbackground is. You know, most of
the people that work for Thrive havesome criminal or justice involved background. You
know, we're happy to have youhelp and try to make a difference.
(05:32):
Do you need to have had anofficial diagnosis of substance abuse or be in
recovery to be an actual peer likesomeone who maybe just knows the problem continues
to grow and wants to be helpa helper. There can you do that?
So the state is actually loosen thatup a little bit. That's a
(05:53):
great question. So you don't haveto be but you need to really have
a family member, um, thatwas potentially involved in you know, and
have a need. So that's whowe're looking to hire is people that have
had some involvement in the process.Once UM, someone successfully is I guess
(06:14):
recovered from your program, where dothey Where do they go? Do they
go back to work? Uh?You know? Do they do? They
have homes and families? They're like, what's the next step right after that?
Well, you're never recovered recoveries fora lifetime. And you know,
I can tell you based on myown experience, UM, And what we
try to do is we try toget people to support that they need.
(06:38):
We try to make sure that theyhave you know, housing and medical care
and uh and employment, right,I mean those are critical. You know,
those social determinants of health are criticalto a person's recovery. So you
know, if they want to havea full recovery, we have to help
support them to get there. So, yes, most of the people,
(07:00):
after they've worked with our program,we want to make sure that there's you
know, they have a good transitionback to a life of independence. Right.
Are there companies that I mean,we know that there are labor shortages,
people who there's a need for skilledlaborers and unskilled laborers these days.
(07:20):
Our companies willing to take a lookat someone who's come through recovery and thrive
peer recovery. Absolutely. You know, there's a number of different companies that
are out, you know to helpindividuals that could use some support. And
so I think we're very fortunate inCleveland that our number of companies are willing
to give people, you know,an opportunity and we you know, one
(07:43):
of the things that I'm most proudof is we've hired a number of people
that have gone through our program.They've now become peer supporters. So that's,
you know, pretty cool, that'sfantastic. Do you are you comfortable
talking about your experience? Sure?Can you tell us? You know,
you can share as much as littleas you like. But I think you
know, having someone who's the CEOof this recovery company, Now, if
(08:07):
someone's listening and needs help or knowssomeone that needs help, you're not alone,
right, And how did you cometo the program? How did it
happen for you? About nine yearsago, I had a very bad relapse
on alcohol and that was coupled withfabilitating depression and really bad anxiety, and
I bounced around treatment and ended upin what's called a partial hospitalization program.
(08:31):
So I was in treatment, youknow, four days a week, three
four days a week, four hoursat a time. In that program with
me, there were seven other peoplejust like me. A big difference between
me and them was socioeconomic, butreally some amazing people. And I was
in really bad shape at the time, and you know, the program was
(08:52):
extremely helpful. But there was apeer in that room, somebody just liked
me that really helped me get mysmile back, helped me get my confidence
back. Unfortunately, six of theseven of those people relapsed within ninety days,
and I know two passed away,and I wasn't ready to go back
to work. I'm a business guy, you know, I had my own
consulting practice, and I said,there's got to be a better way.
(09:13):
And so I talked to some expertsin the sector and they told me that
the real gap in treatment is continuingcare. What do people do after they
get out of treatment. So along story short, amazing company called New
Directions helped us get launched financially andwith resources. The first model that we
(09:37):
built was a mobile app and youcould call somebody and have virtual peer support.
This is such an incredible story,Brian. I mean, when you
think about you were a victim,I guess I don't know if that's the
right word of addiction. You fellinto that path and knew that once you
(09:58):
got out of that, you hadyou had the ability to sort of start
this company, right, with thehelp of some others, right, And
so now you're giving back in yourown way. And it's got to be
both again rewarding and extremely challenging.How can someone you said, you mentioned
getting to the website and what awhat's the type of commitment. Can you
(10:18):
people do this as a part time? Can people be peers as part time?
Can they do it? Um?On the side, And I'm just
curious how we can help more people. We we strongly encourage full time.
Um, you can work part time, but it's twenty hours a week.
But again, we like the peopleto have full time so that we can
have continuity of care for the individualsthat we serve. Yeah, you know,
(10:41):
it's it's really important that we tryto have the same person for them.
UM, so that you know,there's a lot of trust tissues initially,
so that's you know, critically important. So the need for peers to
help folks out of addiction has neverbeen greater. Thrive Peer Recovery Resources is
(11:03):
a company and I guess an organizationthat is helping doing incredible work in our
community to help folks who are inthe deepest, darkest depression or despair,
right and they come out of thegutter, as you said, and they
can become a productive member of society. That has to feel good. So
if folks are looking for an employmentopportunity, I think that's something they should
(11:26):
they should consider. So one ofthe things we talk about on CEOs.
You should know is how folks withhigh stress jobs, and boy, I
can't imagine a job more stressful thanyours, right, because it's a lot
of responsibility on your shoulders. Howdo you center yourself these days? How
do you decompress or find you know, your sort of peace? Well,
(11:48):
a couple of ways. First ofall, I'm part of an amazing team,
and so it's not that it's notyou know, there's stress in the
job, but there are so manywonderful people that I get to work with
that really help support support the organization. But I work out every morning,
you know, religiously, very good. And then I am a member of
(12:11):
AA I go to five meetings aweek. You know. That helps me
from a spiritual perspective. You know, I have the opportunity to sponsor individuals,
so it gives me a chance toto give back a little bit.
I play with my grandchildren a lot. Wow, I get to do that.
That's the coolest part, right,you know, absolutely, I mean,
(12:35):
wow, congratulations. Look again,I feel like the folks and so
many people in our society that arehelping people, nurses, teachers, police
officers, were they're so underappreciated.These days and the work you're doing to
help, you know, good peoplewho fell into a bad situation. I
(12:56):
think that's incredible and I think youshould really proud of the work you're doing.
So congratulations, thank you for that. And I have to say,
you know, it's really our peersupporters are the people that are on the
ground that are really making a difference, and you know, they do such
a fantastic job and I just love, you know, some of the amazing
work that they do and some ofthe amazing stories. And unfortunately they're not
(13:18):
all amazing stories, you know,it's which makes it even more challenging.
So if you've life what you heardand you think you can help to become
a peer, thrive Peer Recovery Servicesdot com and hopefully this podcast inspired some
of you to either seek treatment orhelp others. Thanks Brian, appreciate your
(13:39):
time. Thank you, and thishas been IHR Radio CEOs. You should
know today's show was produced by BobCoats and I'm Keith Hoskiss. Let's see
you next time.
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