NCJ Number
198901
Date Published
2003
Length
21 pages
Annotation
This chapter describes the Epoch Counseling Center in Baltimore, Maryland.
Abstract
Epoch Counseling Center is responsible for delivering treatment interventions for adolescents. Epoch has five treatment facilities and has been offering outpatient substance abuse treatment services to adults, adolescents, youth-at-risk, and families for 30 years. Epoch Counseling Center is a private nonprofit agency that receives funding from various grants. The clinical program is contracted to serve 510 individuals at any given time. The adolescent treatment program is based on both social learning theory, which explains substance abuse initiation, and conditioning theory, which explains continuation. Adolescents are first screened to determine their eligibility for outpatient treatment. Clients are then scheduled for one of two types of treatment induction within one week following admission: motivational interviewing and counseling overview. Clients then meet with their assigned counselor to develop a treatment plan. Clients found suitable for group treatment enter Epoch’s standard course of treatment. Group counseling consists of a drug education group and skills building group. Participants are predominately male, white, and live under the legal custody of a single parent. The Epoch Counseling Center and Social Research Center are collaborating to develop an adolescent group-based outpatient treatment program that is both comprehensive and feasible for implementation in community-based facilities. 1 table, 49 references