Most Detox Concierge alcohol-detox programs are planned for five days. The patient should plan to be away from ordinary work from Friday through Tuesday. Friday is taken off, Saturday and Sunday provide two protected days, and limited remote work on Monday and Tuesday may be possible only as the patient’s condition permits.
There is no additional charge for beginning or continuing care over the weekend. The physician-directed care and continuous onsite nursing continue without interruption.
Friday is not medically better than another day, and a Friday start does not mean the patient misses only one weekday. It moves two of the five treatment days to the weekend and may allow limited remote work during the final two days if the patient is well enough. The right date is the first appropriate five-day period the patient can realistically protect—not a perfect week that keeps moving farther away.
Why Friday Can Work for a Business Owner or Executive
People commonly delay detox because they cannot see how to fit it around work. Friday creates a usable structure:
- Friday: take one full weekday away from work and let the onsite care begin without competing meetings or travel.
- Saturday and Sunday: continue the medical plan and continuous nursing through the weekend, with no added weekend charge.
- Monday and Tuesday: remain away from ordinary duties while the planned five-day period is completed. Limited remote work may be possible only if the patient’s condition, medication effects and job responsibilities allow it.
Dr. Reitman directs the medication schedule around the patient’s medical needs. When medically appropriate, he can adjust dose timing to reduce unnecessary daytime sedation and make limited remote work more feasible. This is still a planning model, not a promise that every patient will be able to work. Detox comes first. Do not schedule driving, travel, important negotiations, childcare without backup or other responsibilities that cannot be interrupted.
The benefit of the Friday plan is not speed. It is that the patient creates enough protected time for the nurse and Dr. Reitman to complete the planned care without work repeatedly pulling the person away.
What Does a Friday-Start Alcohol Detox Look Like?
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Timing |
Practical plan |
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Before Friday |
Call the care team, discuss availability and cost, complete the confidential phone consultation with Dr. Reitman, and agree on the start date. The nurse obtains Dr. Reitman’s ordered medication before coming to the patient. |
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Friday — Day 1 |
The nurse arrives, performs the onsite assessment and BAC test, checks the location for accessible alcohol and begins the physician-directed plan. The nurse remains onsite continuously, including overnight. |
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Saturday–Sunday — Days 2–3 |
The nurse continues monitoring, administering and accounting for medication, supporting compliance and helping prevent further drinking. Dr. Reitman directs the care remotely and remains available on call to the nurse. |
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Monday–Tuesday — Days 4–5 |
The patient remains away from ordinary duties while medical and nursing care continues. Limited remote work may be possible as the patient’s condition permits. When medically appropriate, Dr. Reitman can adjust dose timing to reduce unnecessary daytime sedation, but safety and the patient’s response determine the plan. |
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If more time is needed |
Five days is the usual plan, not a forced stopping point. Some patients require longer, and the plan should follow the patient’s condition rather than the calendar. |
The patient keeps access to a phone and may involve family or trusted people with permission. Detox Concierge does not require AA, a 12-step program or residential rehab afterward. The patient decides what comes next.
Do Not Wait Until Work Is No Longer the Problem
A difficult week at work can become next week, then the week after that. Meanwhile, the drinking pattern continues. Some people finally call only after they are shaking, unable to sleep, falling, vomiting, confused or experiencing dangerous changes in pulse or blood pressure.
By then, the question may no longer be how to schedule a private five-day detox. The immediate question may be whether the person is stable enough for home care or needs emergency evaluation. Alcohol-withdrawal symptoms can escalate quickly, and early identification and medical management can reduce the risk of progression to severe or complicated withdrawal. 1
Do not wait for symptoms to prove that the person needs help. You can call while the person is still drinking and schedule the consultation and start date. A family member or trusted person can make the initial call when the patient is too intoxicated, overwhelmed or unable to explain the situation clearly.
Call 911 for a seizure, signs of stroke, severe confusion, hallucinations, trouble breathing, inability to awaken the person, fainting or any rapidly worsening condition.
“They made immediate attention to my well being their top priority, came to see me in person the same day I called, and flew Scott in from California to Miami the very next day to get my process started.”
When Should You Not Wait for Friday?
Do not delay several days merely to create a convenient weekend schedule if withdrawal may already be starting or the person’s condition is changing. Call the care team immediately and describe what is happening. If the condition is an emergency, call 911.
The practical schedule comes after the medical question. Dr. Reitman considers the drinking pattern, previous withdrawal, current symptoms, other medications and substances, last alcohol use, BAC and medical history when directing the plan.
Friday also may not work when the patient cannot protect the full five days, the home setting is not ready or work duties require driving, physical risk, high-stakes decisions or uninterrupted attention. A different start date is better than pretending Monday and Tuesday will be normal workdays.
How Do You Schedule a Friday Start?
Call or text the Detox Concierge care team as soon as you know you want to create a five-day window. The first conversation covers the immediate situation, availability, the one-time all-inclusive charge and the intake process. Detox Concierge is private-pay and does not bill or accept insurance. There is no separate travel charge and no added weekend charge.
If you decide to proceed, a confidential phone consultation with Dr. Reitman is scheduled. The patient does not travel to an office, and Dr. Reitman does not routinely come to the home. The phone process removes unnecessary delay. Care can usually begin within 24 hours after the consultation once the plan and start date are agreed.
For clients in Los Angeles and other service areas confirmed by the care team, the physician-directed care and continuous nursing come to the patient. Prescribed medication is included in every Detox Concierge alcohol detox.
Read the complete medical and nursing description at Alcohol Detox at Home.
Call or text (310) 484-4803 to ask whether Friday—or an earlier date—is the right time to begin.
“They were very responsive and communicative about the process and laid out how the program works prior to agreeing to treatment.”
Medical Sources
1 American Society of Addiction Medicine, The ASAM Clinical Practice Guideline on Alcohol Withdrawal Management. Supports risk-oriented assessment, the possibility of rapid escalation and the value of early identification and medication management. The guideline supports the short safety passage; it does not determine Detox Concierge’s scheduling or pricing.