There are many drug treatment programs to choose from, but should a center stand out? The features mentioned below will help you select an effective and accredited drug treatment program that will serve your needs.
Staff Credentials
As with any health issue, you want to ensure that treatment and health programs are overseen by credentialed healthcare professionals. Clinical studies show that substance abuse programs with highly trained professionals use the best evidence-based practices that lead to recovery.
Drug treatment programs usually make clear that their staff has specific credentials, so it should be easy to find out if their therapists have relevant certifications.
On a related note, you should confirm the program has been evaluated and accredited by a respected organization, such as the Joint Commission For Addiction Treatment.
Easy To Access
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) reports that ease of access is essential for a drug treatment program to be effective.
When people are addicted to alcohol or drugs, there may be several periods of intoxication and withdrawal, which means time is of the essence to get them into treatment.
The last thing a person with a substance abuse problem needs is to wait for days or weeks to enter treatment; they need to start as soon as they are ready.
Integrated Treatment Approach
People in treatment for drug and alcohol problems may have other medical issues that require simultaneous treatment.
For example, someone with an alcohol problem may also have hepatitis, depression, anxiety, and alcoholic liver disease.
The best drug treatment program should have integrated approaches to treatment to ensure that the whole person is treated. In addition, integrated treatment approaches maximize the odds that substance abuse treatment will be effective and lead to remission.
Look For Behavioral Therapies
Behavioral therapies, which include psychological counseling for individuals and families, tend to be some of the most effective treatments for substance abuse.
These therapies deal with the client’s motivations to make changes, offer rewards for abstinence, develop skills to fight substance abuse, and encourage more productive personal relationships.
Also, patients who attend group therapy and other programs with peer support may help them avoid future substance abuse.
Family Involved In Treatment Program
Statistics show that involving family and significant others in treatment boosts the chances of continuing therapy and achieving the best results.
Many treatment programs use family therapy to help the individual deal with their substance problem. Family therapy engages the treated individual and at least one other family member to apply behavioral and mental health strategies that help them understand each other.
Also, therapy can teach the group about behaviors that can help or hurt the recovery. Group therapy is helpful because patients see others with the same problems they have, and can support each other as they proceed through the program.
Respectful And Professional Environment
The drug treatment program should have an environment like a typical medical setting. You don’t need fancy furniture and palm trees, but it should be cheerful, bright, and clean.
It’s essential the program treats a substance abuse problem with the same medical professionalism as other health conditions.
Having a professional and respectful environment may be even more important for substance abuse patients; those with this problem may feel like they’ve lost their dignity, but a professional, empathetic environment can help them regain it.
Methods To Retain Patients
One of the challenges with substance abuse treatment programs is the dropout rate for the first month is about 50%. Dropouts mean people don’t get the help they need, so it’s essential that the program use effective strategies to retain clients.
One way this is done is by making an environment that develops patient trust with transparency and communication about the facility’s programs and rules. A drug treatment program also can retain its clients by having empathetic and effective counseling that builds the provider-patient relationship.
An effective program also may use rewards for clients to continue to attend and not revert to old habits.
High Rate Of Success
One of the best signs of a quality drug treatment program is a high success rate.
However, you should check how the treatment center defines success. Is it the number of people who complete the program every year? Or is success the number who stay sober for six months? Be sure to ask at the beginning how the program measures success.
It’s also important to consider the type of patients the treatment center typically has. For instance, a drug treatment center that caters to military veterans may have fewer successful patients than one that treats teenage alcoholism.
Measurement Systems In Place
A quality drug treatment program has ways to measure clients’ responses to their treatment. Just like a doctor checks your blood pressure at the doctor’s office, drug treatment programs should regularly review how the patient is responding to treatment.
Without metrics to check results, it’s hard to show that clients are making progress.
Attends To Other Client Needs
The program should deal with more than the patient’s drug abuse; it also should take into account their related psychological, medical, social, and legal issues to ensure long-term results.
After all, if the patient continues to be saddled with related problems, it’s likely they will revert to their substance abuse to deal with these challenges.
Quality Healthcare Onsite
Drug and alcohol abuse can affect our bodies and minds in many ways, but we may not understand how until the person tries to stop. That is why the best drug treatment programs have medical care available to address physical and mental health issues that occur.
Receiving the best care from qualified doctors and nurses during the detox process is vital to withdraw safely from alcohol and opioids, among other substances.
The features above indicate that a drug program is probably a good one. There are many drug treatment centers to choose from, but you’re more likely to find a successful one if you look for these traits.
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