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Going one Step Further: Evaluating the Formation and Impact of a Substance Abuse Peer Mentorship Team
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| Presenter(s):
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| Lindsay Gustafson,
Central Alberta AIDS Network Society,
lindsay@turningpointagencies.org
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| Christopher Cameron,
Calgary Health Region,
christopher.cameron@calgaryhealthregion.ca
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| Abstract:
Substance abuse is an extremely prevalent social problem in rural communities. The lifestyle that individuals with substance abuse problems lead places them a severe risk for the contraction of various life altering or life threatening diseases, including Hepatitis C and HIV/AIDS. Health professionals are often unable to reach a significant portion of these individuals despite their best efforts. A not-for-profit organization in a small rural town in the province of Alberta recognized the limitations of attempting to serve these individuals on a strictly professional basis. In response to this recognition this organization recruited a small group of individuals who had previously struggled with and overcome substance abuse problems to serve as peer mentors and service providers. An evaluation of the process that this organization engaged in to create and solidify its “peer team” and the outcomes of this process are presented in this paper.
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Evaluating the Productivity Benefits of Substance Abuse Treatment
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| Presenter(s):
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| Angela Snyder,
Georgia State University,
angiesnyder@gsu.edu
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| Abstract:
This evaluation capitalizes on administrative data linkages between the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services and the Connecticut Department of Labor to study employment outcomes after outpatient substance abuse treatment. Results of this study provide the evidence and inputs necessary to perform informed cost benefit analyses of Connecticut's substance abuse treatment system. A quasi-experimental design is used to compare the post-treatment earnings of the substance abuse clients to individuals in Connecticut with similar demographic profiles. Longitudinal methods are utilized to compare earnings trajectories over time for ten quarters post-treatment. Results suggest that while both groups lose earnings in the outcome period, the outpatient treatment clients may make on average $79 dollars per quarter more after treatment than their demographically-matched counterparts.
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Jail Interventions for Individuals With Co-occurring Disorders: A Comparison of Urban and Rural Programs in Pennsylvania
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| Presenter(s):
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| Holly Wald,
HPW Associates,
hwald@hpwassoc.com
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| Cynthia Zubritsky,
University of Pennsylvania,
cdz@mail.med.upenn.edu
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| Abstract:
Pennsylvania's Co-Occurring Systems Integration Grant (COSIG) focuses on the development of six unique demonstration programs, two of which include forensic programs that have three service delivery systems working together to identify and support individuals with COD (Mental Health, Substance Abuse and Criminal Justice). This presentation will focus on the two forensic programs that screen and assess persons entering the jails; including both an urban and a mixed rural-suburban model.
Individuals in these forensic programs have continually screened positive for COD at a higher rate than in traditional community COD programs. The results indicated that: women were highly over-represented in the treatment population compared males; women screened and assessed at a much higher rate for mental health disorders as their primary disorders; and men screened and assessed at a higher rate for substance abuse disorders. These gender and disorder-based differences will be discussed. Lessons learned regarding use of these findings for program planning will also be described.
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The Rochester Drug Court: A Replicated Evaluation
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| Presenter(s):
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| Stephen L Fielding,
University of Rochester,
sfielding@childrensinstitute.net
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| Rusti Berent,
University of Rochester,
rberent@childrensinstitute.net
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| Abstract:
While evaluations of drug courts are on the rise, there are few that have been replicated after the passage of time by a second, independent evaluator. This evaluation includes greater social context information and a longer follow-up than the prior. The original evaluation examined participants arrested from 1995 through 1998, the current from participants arrested from 1999 through 2005. Both evaluations are based on a secondary data analysis of New York State DCJS data (sealed and unsealed records) matched with RDTC records, and both utilize propensity score matching to establish the comparison group. We test the hypotheses that drug recidivism rates up to six years post-arrest will be significantly lower among the RDTC participants compared with a similar cohort of criminal defendants, and that this difference will be equal to or greater than the difference between the prior drug court participants and a similar cohort of criminal defendants.
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