Co Founder Hemet Valley Recovery Center
1939-2004
 Dr. Galletta first shared his dream of opening a treatment facility in the Hemet community in the mid 1990’s. He spoke of it often. He approached the Administration of Hemet Valley Medical Center several times with his plans of establishing a premier treatment facility in the inland region of California only to be turned away again and again. But his stubborn streak finally paid off and in 2001, the Hemet Valley Recovery Center opened its doors. The heart and sole of the facility is derived from the person that Dr. Galletta was. For those who knew him, this is easily understood, for those who did not know him allow me to introduce you to him.
If you would look up the words “Addiction Treatment Pioneer” in the dictionary, you would most likely see a picture of Dr. Joseph Galletta. Dr. Galletta was one of the first Physicians to become certified in the new field of Addiction Medicine back in 1983. He dedicated his medical practice to patients who struggled with addictive disease and in doing so, he helped move the treatment of addictions from the court rooms and jails of the legal system to the beds and group rooms of hospitals, clinics, and residential facilities.
Dr. Galletta was a man of great generosity, giving freely of his time and resources for the simple reward of helping. I know of many occasions in which Dr. Galletta provided services to individuals regardless of their ability to pay. He also provided the gift of his time serving on the boards of various facilities and organizations free of charge. Active as a member, and later as the chairman of the Physician Wellness Committee of the Riverside Medical Association, Dr.. Galletta assisted many Physicians into treatment and recovery as well as assisting hospitals and medical centers in the development of wellness committee’s of their own. His efforts have had a lasting positive impact on the practice of medicine in the Riverside area and will so for years to come.
Dr. Galletta was a man who could help lift the spirits of the hopeless and the helpless, through encouragement, kindness, and that gentle touch that came from somewhere deep inside of him. He often would break the ice with a new patient by telling a bad lawyer joke, and then put them at ease with his confidence their ability to recover and thrive.
Dr. Galletta was a colleague who always down played his importance on the team and boosted the roles of others in a selfless style so rare in people and even rarer in Physicians. He would always say, “I’m just the doctor; it’s the team that gets you well”. It was this humble demeanor that was so remarkable, so special, and so Joe. Dr. Galletta’s enthusiasm for the field of chemical dependency treatment was so genuine, and contagious that he was responsible for drawing several healthcare professionals into the field as well as being responsible for the certification of a number of addiction specialist physicians who otherwise would have never even considered this specialty area of practice. His Physician education efforts in support of early identification and intervention of addictive disease in private practice assisted thousands of patients into treatment who otherwise may never have been identified by their doctors as having the disease.
Most importantly, Dr. Galletta was a friend who showed great loyalty in both the good times and the bad. Someone you could count on to be in your corner as a matter of fact and someone who commanded respect through his actions and his deeds and not through his titles and position. Dr. Galletta was someone that I selfishly called my friend, but someone that I realize was most likely was yours as well.
Dr. Galletta will always be missed by all who knew him, but through the work of the Hemet Valley Recovery Center, his spirit lives on. With each patient that finds recovery through the efforts of the treatment center his mission has been fulfilled.
Steven Collier |
