Residual Substance Abuse Treatment Program - Essay Example

Outline 0. Introduction 2.0. Discussion 2 Residual substance abuse treatment 2.2. The correctional corporation of America 2.3. The correctional treatment facility in Washington DC 2.4. Treatment planning for substance abuse 2.5. Approaches to treatment planning 2.6. Determinants of treatment 2.7. Psychological and emotional problems 2.8. Criminology and psycopathy 2.9. Conclusion 1.0. Introduction Drug and substance abuse is the over-adaptation by an individual to the use of drugs that one does not necessarily need. Drugs vary and include those that alter the individual’s mood and psycho activities, ranging to those that enhance performance in activities such as steroids used to increase an athlete’s sporting capability. Substance abuse, therefore, includes an individual’s inability to control his impulses. Drug and substance abuse generally have negative connotations and usage is usually prohibited and regulated by both the government agencies and private corporations tasked with the responsibility of eliminating the problem of drug and substance abuse. Drugs that fall under this category include alcohol, amphetamines, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, cocaine, methaqualone, and opioids. Depending on the jurisdictions of various countries, drug and substance abuse may lead one to be convicted of criminal offence and penalty. Another category of drug abuse misuse is the abuse of clinical drugs such as sedatives, analgesic, stimulants, and anxiolytic. Drug abuse with these substances occurs when prescriptions are misused, or administered inconsistently, or intentional use misuse in order to intoxicate oneself. Continued abuse of drugs creates in the victim a state of tolerance for the drugs. This means that his central nervous system gets addicted to the drugs and cannot function well without the drugs in its system. a halt to the use of the drugs creates withdrawal symptoms on the user, adversely affecting his functionality. 2.0. Discussion 2.1. Residual Substance Abuse Treatment The Residual Substance Abuse Treatment (RSAT) is a program for state prisoners aimed at enabling local governments and states to provide programs for treating substance abuse in their correction and detention facilities. Besides offering the services for the inmates while still in prison, the program extends its services to them after they are released as a form of community-based services. Those eligible for the services are prisoners in state prisons as individuals or groups. Requirements for the services include that the services last between 6-12 months, meaning that only prisoners imprisoned for such length of time only are legible. The second requirement is that the services be offered in a residential facility, a facility sent apart from the general population. The services focus duly on rehabilitation the inmate and nothing else such as the crimes he committed leading to his incarceration. The services are encompassing, integrating the inmate’s cognitive, behavioral, social, and cognitive skills in helping him get past the addiction. 2.2. The Correctional Corporation of America The Correctional Corporation of America was formed in 1983 with the major aim of offering the public the much needed correctional facilities and assistance, by bridging the gap created by government failures with better solutions for a better future. Founders and co-founders introduced such policies as public policy, understanding of the legislative process, proper experience and knowledge in public correction, and financial knowledge in the body when it was being formed so that they have continued to govern the processes of its running. The correctional Center of America is the major operator of the correctional treatment facility as an addition to the jail in Washington DC on a contract basis. 2.3. The Correctional Treatment Facility in Washington DC This was reinvented in 1992 as a security institution offering medium security services. The facility offers the department of corrections medium security services for both its male and female inmates. The facility offers a number of services related to drug and substance abuse, all aimed at recuperating former users who wish to rehabilitate. These include information on alcoholism treatment, centers for drug and substance abuse, addiction medicine by physicians and surgeons, assisted living facilities, clinics, counseling services, medical laboratory services, nursing and convalescent homes, crisis intervention services, information and treatment on gambling addiction, physical therapy, social services, urgent care, and insurance among other services offered. The facility’s goal is to rehabilitate inmates in jails in the state as a way of giving back to the community and improving security in government correction facilities. The facility, together with other similar facilities under the Correction Corporation of America manages about a total of 75,000 inmates all over the state. This is in line with the country’s main prison agenda: rehabilitation of prisoners. The lifeline substance abuse training program introduced by the CCA has remained to be a core objective and function of the center, offering rehabilitation for drug and substance users. Besides caring for adult inmates, the program caters for juvenile client population as the problem of substance abuse continues to find more audience with the juveniles. Studies have indicated an increased link between delinquents and drug, especially alcohol abuse. Juvenile delinquency is especially a big issue because it reflects and expands its impact on the larger society. The correctional treatment facility, therefore, offers juvenile treatment with the aim of ceasing future criminal behavior. Treatment begins with an assessment of the extent of abuse and its impact on the criminality of the juvenile. The juvenile is presented with Personal Experience Screen Questionnaires (PESQ). It identifies those affected and the level to which they have been affected. Those found to be at advanced levels and in need of advanced therapy and treatment is admitted in the facility for social and psychological treatment. The facility operates hand in hand with four other departments that are operated half way. These are efforts of the ex-convicts, Extended House inc. Fairview, and the Hope village. Courts within the DC, both district and superior courts place offenders on pretrial and those who have been sentenced as misdemeanors in the halfway house facilities instead of incarcerating them in jail. These offer educational and other program facilities and services. In achieving its mission and carrying it out to completion, the RSAT carries out its mission in three components. The services are offered for prisoners while in prison for a period between 6-12 months. Those receiving the services are separated from the other prisoners for the entire time they are on the program. The second segment focuses on the problem of substance abuse of the offender entirely aside from the crimes he committed. The final segment of treatment is a follow-up after the incarceration period. It follows up on his progress on recovering from the substance abuse and related problems. Completion of each segment requires that the offender provides a urinalysis and other tests to ascertain their progress on the rehabilitation process. The tests are use to test on the amounts of substance in the victim. The correctional facility attempts in all ways possible to rid the inmates of drug practices and besides the criminal correction they get at jail. Studies have correlated crime with other prevalent situations such as homelessness, mental disorder, and drug addiction. They further have indicated that those who are homeless with mental disorders have a higher rate probability of engaging in drugs and substance abuse. The RSAT takes time, therefore, to study demographics of its patients before starting any treatment therapy. It pays special attention to the homeless and those with mental disorders. Coincidentally, this group happens to be the ones most legible for the RSAT program. This is because the program requires that those enrolled must take part for at least three months. The homeless and those with mental disorders are more likely to stay in jail this entire time because the lack funds for bail, they may have absconded appearing to court, therefore will not be allowed bail, or have committed the crime a multiple numbers of times. These and other reasons make them stay longer in jail than other offenders. Therefore, they can easily enroll for the RSAT. 2.4. Treatment Planning for Substance Abuse When offenders are admitted into the correctional facility, they are screened and assesses on their need for treatment for substance abuse. This ensures that the treatment services, triage, and placement specifications match the offender’s needs. All this information is gathered on the treatment plan. The plan defines the history of the offender’s involvement with the drugs and his criminal history, what amount and type of help they need, and how the available resources can best be utilized to help them in their treatment. The resources are classified on the basis of personal, programs, and criminal justice programs. The plan, therefore, serves as a link between the client and those offering the treatment, providing them with a blueprint of the client’s treatment needs. The plan also serves as a guide for the client, letting him know and understand what is needed of him to aid the treatment process, based on his current status. 2.5. Approaches to Treatment Planning Various approaches are applied for various clients depending on the severity of their cases of substance abuse, their personal responses and attitudes, the medical and health condition, and their history/ past experiences. The level to which a client is motivated and encouraged to change his behavior both in crime and substance abuse provides a guide to the treatment providers on the interventions for enhancing the motivation within the client, therefore achieving cure faster. Another major determinant of the approach taken is the client’s mental condition. This is important as we stated earlier that studies have found established links between such offenders’ substance abuse, homelessness, and mental disorders. Presence of any such disorder limits the type of treatment accorded and the patient will need further psychiatric help. An effective treatment requires that the offender-client takes part in designing his treatment plan so that they can positively identify suitable programs to make compliance easier. 2.6. Determinants of Treatment The history and patterns of use including chronological patterns, reasons for use, repercussions of use, and family history are used to determine the right form of treatment. For RSAT clients, however, treatment is proposed upon the client’s crime-related offense. This, however, is not enough to determine a client’s full extent of need for treatment. It is for this reason that the correctional facility takes samples of blood and or urine from a client to measure the amount of intoxicant n hi8s body before recommending treatment. Such a measure is important as it differentiates between clients with severe addiction and usage and those with less severity. Studies have also shown that clients with less severity protest and become rebellious to intensive treatment programs and being put together to the hard core users. In fact, continued association and interaction of those with less severity with the hard core users is highly likely to make them increase their usage and, eventually, become hard core users. The opposite for his principle also applies as those with high severity are likely to reduce their usage when they associate with the less severe users. This is among the core criteria the facility uses to classify its clients. 2.7. Psychological and Emotional Problems. The facility identifies that users and abusers of substances have disorders that may not necessarily be as a result of usage. Such offenders have a high rate of disorders of affection such as anxiety and personality disorders. Long-term use of drugs and abusing other substances and traumatic life experiences may develop emotional disorders in an individual. Some persons may already have mental disorders before starting use of drugs or may develop the disorder after usage. The common disorders include anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress. The facility, therefore, integrates these disorders and the problems of drug and substance abuse in planning and executing treatments for its clients. They also take into account the client’s cognitive disabilities and their need for support. If such disabilities are not addressed during treatment, and the patient is likely to relapse and fall deeper into usage and abuse. In cases where the clients suffer serious mental disorders that translate to physical abuse such as physical self harm and behavior that is threatening, professional psychiatric treatment is offered within and outside the facility. Those with the even more severe explosive disorders are given critical assessment of possible causes for the disorders before any treatment plan can be started. It is usual that such behaviors are triggered by certain aspects in the environment or some aspects of behavior in others. In such cases, the client signs a contract with the facility. The client will be required to report any disturbances in the environment that triggers such feelings within them. With such an agreement, the client becomes eligible for sanctions in cases of misconduct, or referral to another facility with specialized treatment. 2.8. Criminality and Psychopathy While treating its clients, the facility attempts to determine whether his criminal tendencies are responsible for his involvement in drugs, or whether the use of drugs is responsible for his involvement in crime. This is useful for striking a balance between the treatment and correction services offered by the facility and jail services. Although there is increased trend for offenders to associated with crime, it should not be at any one point be assumed that the crimes committed by offenders using drugs are as a result of the drugs and substances they abuse such as due to intoxication and impaired judgment because of the usage. Some offenders have recorded high crime patterns even when out of usage (McAuliffe, Dunn, & Zhang: 218-416). The facility conducts follow-up for its clients once they are released from jail. Such linkages form part of the final treatment plan and are an essential part of the plan. These are more important to clients whose jail terms were shorter, so that they did not spend much time in the facility’s program. The extent of the follow-up also depends on the needs of the client in terms of educational, vocational, medical, legal, and mental services. For effective operation and success of the links, the facility provides full information on the client to the community treatment providers so that they can trace any form of deviation in behavior. 3.0. Conclusion Offenders in jails and other correctional facilities provide one of the biggest drug and substance abusers. Some studies have related crime to use of drugs so that either one leads to the other. The truth of this claim remains unascertained. A number of correctional facilities have adopted the RSAT program as a way of offering wholesome correction and recovery of the user, besides the criminal correction. It is for these reasons that the correctional treatment facility in Washington DC devised a comprehensive plan and strategy for the treatment of offenders who are involved with drugs and substance abuse at the same time. Despite the facility being privately owned, it works in conjunction with state prisons and has maintained its excellence in offering RSAT to offenders. The facility’s objectives are the overall correction of an individual by offering medical and psychological treatment to an offender. Even when he completes his jail term, the facility has a follow-up project that ensures that the ex-convict who probably has undergone sufficient rehabilitation will fit into society well and not slide back to using the drugs. The facility’s goals are that it reduces, if not eliminates drug and substance abuse among offenders and inmates for and that subsequent clients will not be involved in the usage. It also hopes to eliminate the possible causes of involvement in the drugs such as mental disorders, emotional breakage, and financial problems that cause depression and other related conditions that make it inviting for the offenders to use drugs. Work Cited McAuliffe, William, Ryan Dunn and Caroline Zhang. An Integrated Substance Abuse Treatment Needs Assessment. MA: University of Cambridge Press. 2002. Print. Read More