NCJ Number
176722
Editor(s)
G J Stahler,
B Stimmel
Date Published
1995
Length
232 pages
Annotation
The National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, in consultation with the National Institute on Drug Abuse, developed a $48 million 3-year funding program to support the development and assessment of various treatment strategies for homeless persons with alcohol and other drug problems; this book presents evaluation research from 10 of the 14 projects.
Abstract
In addition to presenting the evaluation findings pertinent to treatment effectiveness, the papers also address dosage effects of services, and client-characteristic predictors of successful treatment. A number of conclusions emerged from the studies. First, it is essential to develop treatment programs that not only focus on the addiction, but also address the tangible needs of homeless clients, particularly housing, income support, and employment. Second, dropout rates were high for this population no matter what type of intervention was provided; part of the reason for this may be client lack of motivation for treatment. There is a need to develop flexible, low-demand interventions that can accommodate clients who are not willing to initially commit to more extended care. Third, clients in both experimental and control groups seemed to improve significantly by the end of treatment; however, with a few exceptions, treatment modality did not differentially affect outcomes in most cases. Fourth, treatment outcomes were particularly positive after treatment but seemed to diminish over time; this suggests the need for longer term, continuous interventions for this population. Fifth, there are apparently certain subgroups of clients who will have more positive outcomes than others, most notably those with higher education attainment, with less severe substance use, with less criminal involvement, and with less social isolation. Chapter references and tables, a selective guide to current reference sources on topics discussed in the book, and a subject index