Mark Stovall joins as first COO
Mark Stovall, CAT, CMHT
Oxford Treatment Center has tapped the former statewide head of substance abuse treatment oversight as its first Chief Operating Officer (COO).
Mark Stovall, CAT, CMHT, joined the center in March. He brings nearly 20 years experience in the coordination, development and management of inpatient chemical dependency and behavioral health programs.
“Mark Stovall is ideally suited to advance our clinical programs and refine the care we provide to our patients and their families,” said Mark Sawyer, CEO of Oxford Treatment Center.
“He is deeply familiar with all the dimensions of clinical care and how to excel in each one. Meanwhile, his passion for helping people overcome addiction is sincere and contagious. Our staff is already benefitting from his engagement and leadership.”
Stovall is the former director of the Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Services for the Mississippi Department of Mental Health (DMH). During his eight years with the department, he led divisions including Adolescent Services, Clinical Services and Treatment Services. His efforts at DMH included advancing the use of evidence-based programs in community treatment centers across Mississippi.
Stovall was recruited to Oxford Treatment Center by founding CEO Billy Young, who recently transitioned into a consulting role with parent company American Addiction Centers (AAC). Stovall’s first visit to the residential campus at Etta was in 2012, as part of a team of state regulators on site for the center’s DMH certification.
“I never dreamed I would be here in the role I have today, or that I’d have the opportunity to work for an organization like AAC,” Stovall said. “I’m impressed every day.
“Both locally and at the corporate level, our goal is driving clinical excellence to help patients be as successful as they can be in long-term recovery,” he said.
During his first weeks at Oxford Treatment Center
Stovall has focused on gathering the insights of existing staff, drilling down into details to define how the center can reach new heights in quality of care.
“Oxford Treatment Center is already a well-oiled machine, with staff and facilities that are second-to-none,” Stovall said. “The task ahead is about pioneering a new level of excellence in addiction treatment.”
Stovall joins Oxford Treatment Center from Stonewater Adolescent Recovery Center, a private treatment facility located outside Oxford. As founding executive director, Stovall oversaw the development of the clinical program from the ground up.
His approach blends hands-on clinical experience with high-level fluency on research-based treatment strategies. He also brings the perspective of being in long-term personal recovery himself.
“The patients who come to us have been through a lot of pain, and have caused a lot of pain,” Stovall said. “When you’re at that place in life, a little bit of love and compassion goes a long way.”
A Mississippi native, Stovall holds a Master of Education degree in Community Counseling from Delta State University. He devoted the early part of his career to supporting mental health and addiction recovery in the Mississippi Delta. He served as director of the Cleveland Crisis Intervention Center, an acute stabilization hospital for seriously mentally ill patients, and as director of adolescent treatment at Region I Mental Health Center-Sunflower Landing.
Stovall is a Certified Addictions Therapist and Certified Mental Health Therapist. He has presented extensively on dual-diagnosis treatment and on treatment planning at state and regional conferences. He has served as director of the Mississippi School for Addiction Professionals.
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