At a small play area inside a newly renovated building on Canal Street in New Orleans, De Jon Muwwakkil watched her daughter work a pulley elevator on a dollhouse and tuck a stuffed panda behind a miniature cupboard — “his new home,” the child announced.

For Muwwakkil, who completed outpatient substance use treatment through Volunteers of America Southeast Louisiana, moments like that show what recovery could like when women don’t have to choose between getting help and caring for their children.

“Having my child in the program with me was the pinnacle, the top-notch service I needed,” she said.

Many women in New Orleans have never been able to consistently stay with their children throughout treatment. But on Tuesday, Nov. 25, VOASELA held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Canal Pointe, New Orleans’ only family-centered residential treatment and recovery facility for pregnant women and mothers with children. The site, a former auto dealership across from University Medical Center, has been transformed into a 31-room center where families will live together for about 90 days while the parent goes through treatment.

“This is an opportunity,” Muwwakkil said. “It keeps women and children safe, away from the triggers, away from the bad actors in the streets, away from the bad substances, the traumatic experiences of someone’s life.”

Keeping families together

A small library inside Canal Pointe is stocked with local children’s books, and the facility also includes a teaching kitchen, play areas, community areas for families, and private rooms equipped with cribs and trundle beds so mothers and children can stay together. Outpatient services are already operating, and residential admissions are expected to begin in December or January.

Medication-assisted treatment will be provided on site through DePaul Community Health Centers. The first week for new residents is typically a blur of medical appointments, group therapy, individual counseling and case management, staff said.

Jackie Kellett, VOASELA’s assistant vice president of integrated and behavioral health and a licensed clinical social worker, said treating mothers alongside their children is essential. Child care barriers often stop women from seeking help, but they don’t have to choose between getting help and their children at Canal Point. With everyone able to stay together, Kellett pointed out the facility would also be able to offer services to anyone in the family who needs it. She often has seen multigenerational substance use.

“I’ve worked with clients where sometimes their first substance use was with their parents, when they were as young as 9 doing heroin,” Kellett said. “It’s really important to break that cycle.”

A growing crisis

Louisiana continues to see high overdose rates among pregnant and postpartum women. Accidental overdose is the leading cause of death among pregnant women in the state. In the most recent report, 28 women died of overdose in a single year.

Nick Albares, who helped oversee the project’s development, said the $8-million-plus facility was funded through a mix of tax credits, federal and private grants, and philanthropy. It will cost roughly $2 million annually to operate. Medicaid is expected to cover about a month of treatment per participant, supplemented by TANF dollars. But outside support will remain critical.

No one will be turned away because of an inability to pay, Albares said. “But it’s not a program that is sustainable on its own.”

“It’s going to take everyone to make it work,” said Voris Vigee, CEO and president of VOASELA.

The facility will accept women from across Louisiana.

VOASELA leaders emphasized the project’s goal of providing long-term stability for families navigating both addiction and poverty. The organization expects Canal Pointe to serve 150 to 200 mothers and children each year.

The organization is accepting donations of hygiene items, cleaning supplies and new clothing for residents.