Assessment of the Role of Human Service Professionals within Substance Abuse Treatment Programs - Essay Example

This discussion will focus on evaluating the role of a human service professional in the area of in programs aimed at empowering communities. The specific focus is on the management of substance abuse addicts who are also criminal offenders within the United States. In most communities, substance abuse addicts pay less attention to their health and thus, have low motivation to seek medical attention[Dru07]. On the contrary, most substance abuse addicts believe that using drugs is the only known means of reducing the challenges resulting from their life experiences or nature of life, particularly the young. In order to survive, some drug addicts choose to engage in survival skills such as the search for food, safety, shelter, and other needs regardless of the risks involved. This search for survival mostly involves conflict with the community and authority who try to challenge their independence and autonomy even when they engage in criminal activities. In addition, most of the substance abuse addicts also develop conflicts with social and human service professionals authorities who reach out to them through substance abuse treatment agencies to try and restore their lives as productive and reliable persons in the society[Dru07]. For the substance abuse offenders, their stay within the criminal justice system requires drug abuse treatment and coupled with adequate assessment of mental disorders[Fle09]. Substance abuse treatment can be provided using public or private substance abuse treatment programs. However, criminal justice system’s lack of coordination, collaboration, and partnership with agencies in communities. In addition, the criminal justice system was extremely fragmented such that causing barriers to coordination between correctional facilities and the judiciary, and social and health services and this translated to ineffective re-entry of offenders into the society[Fle09]. For instance, the criminal justice system includes prisons and jails among others. This paper evaluates the collaboration of criminal justice and substance abuse treatment programs to cater for the treatment of drug abusing offenders in terms of its history in the U.S., its current status, evolution today, and the policies that govern the program. History of the collaboration in criminal justice and substance abuse treatment agencies According to Hora & Stalcup [Hor08], as many as 80% of the adults incarcerated for felonies in the U.S. by 2005 were categorized as regular drug or alcohol abusers,committed violence under the influence of alcohol or drugs, engaged in crime in support of drug use, or were convicted for violation of alcohol or drugs. For a long time, incarceration was not guided by stringent requirements to support substance abuse offenders change their life patterns such that up their release, offenders would not retreat into alcohol or substance abuse[Hor08]. With the introduction of criminal justice supervision, substance abuse treatment programs today involve incorporating treatment planning for drug abusing offenders and ensuring that health service providers are aware of the requirements for correctional requirements. In addition, there were conspicuous disparities across ethnic lines between drug use trends, and incarceration in relation to crimes involving drugs, and the access to treatment for substance use[Bro08]. Statistics revealed that the majority of those incarcerated for drug charges was majorly people of colour who also demonstrated low access to treatment, hence poorer treatment results compared to the white population. Roman, Ducharme, & Knudsen [Rom06] prison treatment programs commenced with project Treatment and Rehabilitation of Addicted Parolees or TRAP that constituted a prerelease component, a transitional model, and aftercare module in 1979. Due to issues with funding, the program did not produce effective results in terms of changing the parolees since no follow up interviews were involved. Between 1979 and 1987, the number of inmates incarcerated with substance abuse rose drastically yet no treatment was provided to them while in prison as evident in a survey by NIDA or National Institute on Drug Abuse. In order to eliminate the existing barriers to offenders accessing substance abuse treatment, NIDA, in 2002 developed a project to improve substance abuse offender’s outcomes through the improved substance abuse integration into other public systems on safety and health. Integration offenders’ substance abuse treatment in public health and safety involve strategies such as case management, promotion of a seamless system of care, and drug court model. According to Fletcher, et al [Fle09], this strategy involved ensuring that substance abuse treatment in jail and within the community collaborated to provide clinical services to offenders and not to bridge organizational boundaries. Through the court-treatment model, collaboration linkages were enhanced between treatment providers and drug court programs to promote client referrals, shared planning of client objectives, sharing of resources and information, and staff cross-training. Finally, the case management integration strategy was used to effectively assist clients to gain access to required services and improving retention while minimizing criminal conduct. Current Status of Criminal Justice and Health Services Provision for Substance Abuse Offenders Today, substance abuse offenders receive more of disease treatment than punishment or confinement given the collaboration with human services agencies[Rom06]. This involves more of identifying drug abuse issues amongst offenders and refining them both in jail-based programs and community agencies. This collaboration not only prevents repeated crime, but also makes offenders to turn away from substance abuse or dependence Marlowe [Mar03]. There is also harm reduction for drug abuse offenders through recognition of health service access inequalities exacerbated by social health factors such as poverty, housing, culture and values, unemployment, and absence of social support[Lau101]. Despite opposition from those who believe in treating substance abuse offenders through a thorough public health perspective, community-based substance abuse treatment coupled with criminal justice supervision offers a more consistent reduction of repeated crime and drug use. The efficiency results from the fact that in prison, the offender is motivated or prepared to change from using drugs while once in the community the released offenders obtain treatment services in transitional settings. The major role of the human services professionals working with community-based agencies, human services professionals are expected to use public health strategies case management to enhance ancillary and referral services for offender-patients. The aim of case management for released offender is to facilitate continuity of care during their reentry into the community such that they can handle situations that can cause relapse, gain peer support that is drug-free, and ensuring they gain relevant information to cope with life in a drug-free society[Fle09]. Consequently, comprehensive care resulting from case management ensures that the human services professionals promote harm reduction for released offenders through complementing abstinence, treatment strategies, and prevention of substance use. Other benefits of case management arise from the fact that human services professionals work closely with substance abuse offender’s families and communities resulting in the reduction of elements such as stigmatization, and social negligence on the offenders. This way, it is possible to assimilate the offenders amongst community members through changed family and community attitudes towards them[Rom06]. As a human services professional, one is expected to observe human rights and emphasizing that family members and the society respect everyone with dignity and respect. In pursuit of respect, human services professionals requires awareness of any ethical conflict that could arise from some people feeling coerced to accept released offenders instead of being left to voluntarily choose what to do. Current Evolution of Criminal Justice and Substance Abuse Treatment Programs In their research, Roman, Ducharme, & Knudsen [Rom06] the current substance abuse treatment field is complex and very substantial, particularly in terms of the size of the internal economy, and the deployed workforce. This field today plays the crucial role of integrating people with obsessions that are substance-centered back into the conventional society. Although the majority of those who successfully complete care within the substance abuse treatment agencies proceed to live normal lives, the field lacks formalized or organized voice for the industry’s growth, shared interests, and survival. This resulting gap is today the major driving factor towards ongoing evaluation of effectiveness of substance abuse treatment over the last several decades[Rom06]. The central and key component of substance abuse management is the substance abuse treatment program whose continued monitoring will offer efficient data and information on how to improve current programs for effective collaboration, communication and information sharing, cooperation and coordination, integration and consolidation. Today, new intervention techniques for substance abuse treatment are present and present the client as the core of understanding the context within which substance abuse treatment is provided[Rom06]. The findings of this study emphasize the need for collaboration between the criminal justice system and human and health service provider and between different units within the criminal justice jurisdiction as far as substance abuse treatment for offenders is concerned. In terms of organizational structure, Roman, Ducharme, & Knudsen [Rom06] identified that private substance treatment programs are more likely to provide both outpatient and inpatient programs, hence more of hospital-based compared to the public programs. In addition, the staff in private abuse treatment programs are mostly, present both full time and part time basis, such as physicians, counsellors, and other health service providers and all have high level education and reliable credentials. Furthermore, private substance treatment programs treat a substantial number of patients, including those that are publicly funded and others from public client referrals. The need for efficient and successful substance abuse programs was evaluated by Fletcher, et al [Fle09] in their proposition of cross-agency collaboration as a way of enhancing the presented mutual benefits and working towards a common goal. The cross – agency collaboration encourages inter-organizational associations that bring with them collaborative advantages that could not be achieved when working independently such as resources, leadership, and expertise. Besides working in collaboration to aid the quality of services provided to patients, criminal justice system and health agencies are expected to work towards collaborative for cost reduction through shared resources, for cost efficiency, and advancing services efficiency. In addition, collaboration increases opportunities for improved professional standard for all organizations involved. Fletcher, et al [Fle09] reveal that the best and most effective forms of government collaboration are formalized such that they are governed by written agreements clearly defining the operating rules, activities, goals, and boundaries. However, whether or not collaboration is formal or informal, they should seek integration through collaboration, coordination, consolidation, and cooperation. In terms of communication and information sharing, Fletcher, et al (2009) emphasized that less formalized structures during collaboration should seek information sharing on issues such as services, clients, and programs through medium such as educational presentations, meetings, and educational presentations. Cooperation and coordination occur in a more structured environment and involved agencies must change to facilitate the success of their programs. Some of the activities requiring coordination and cooperation are client referrals and follow up. Through collaboration, Fletcher, et al (2009) emphasizes that the benefits include formalization of operation procedures, and partnerships with written goals and agreements. Consolidation involves organizations that work with some centralized functions. In the case of the criminal justice system that involves high fragmentation, seeking for consolidation of all programs under one umbrella will result in centralized collaboration and effective service delivery. Some of the programs under this umbrella include jails, community supervision, and prisons, all of which deal with criminals who are at substance abuse offenders. Criminal Justice and human Services Collaboration Moving forward As a human service professional anticipating to work with substance abuse offenders, I believe that the collaboration with the criminal justice system should also include dealing with newly released law offenders addicted to substance abuse, and with mental problems that could result in violence[Lau101]. In most cases, substance abuse offenders have mental and psychological needs, as well as eating disorders that deserve to be addressed and this should be considered as both during their stay in prison and within the community, such integrated treatment of substance abuse offenders will ensure that substance abuse offenders not only obtain substance abuse treatment but also psychiatric treatment coupled with medication use[Rom06]. Psychiatric problems most likely to be present in substance abuse offenders include anxiety, depression, cognitive, and personality disorders. Another area that requires additional integration of drug abuse treatment into the criminal justice system is evidence-based treatment techniques. This area is crucial given the interplay between staff characteristics, organizational structures, and innovation reptivity[Rom06]. Policies that Govern criminal justice system and health services collaboration The major aim of drug treatment is to ensure that those who participate successfully attain normal lives upon their return into the community[Hor08]. The major benefits to the participants include reduction of criminality, recidivism, relapse, and inmate misconduct; improvement in relationships, and mental health conditions and symptoms; and elevation of the offender’s chances of employment and education upon return to the society. Besides benefiting the offenders, these outcomes represent huge economic and safety advantaged to the community. In order to achieve these results, the United State Reform Drug Policy offers the blueprint for minimizing drug usage and consequences. The Reform policy uses four strategies that are: Prevent, Reform, Expand, and Support[Nat142]. Through Prevent, the policy seeks to educate the American population, such that no new drug use cases commences within the population. Drug abuse education involves a series of classes the offer education concerning the use of substances, the associated impacts, and ways of preventing self from taking drugs. Education also involves t identification of offenders who can then be enrolled in other programs. The emphasis of the expand strategy is to ensure that access to treatment for Americans is far and wide and that no American should be struggling with substance addiction. The reform policy also seeks to ensure that all Americans are served under a reformed criminal justice system to discontinue the cycle of drug use, incarceration, and crime while ensuring that the safety of the public is protected[Nat142]. The reform also ensures that the American public is supported in recovery through uplifting the stigmatized addicts recovering from substance use disorders. With emphasis on the great role the reform drug policy plays in America, year 2012 experienced an increase in federal funding for all public health substance abuse programs, and an increase in the national budget utilized towards drug prevention and treatment efforts. Such budgeting will emphasize the public-private substance abuse treatment inter-organizational collaboration in dealing with substance abuse treatment for offenders. This collaboration is emphasized in the research by Roman, Ducharme, and Knudsen (2006) whose findings indicated that private sectors offer treatment to a considerable number of patients who are publicly funded through referrals from local services agencies. Of these patients, approximately a third are on probation or parole, although these numbers are even higher in public sectors. For the human services professionals, the growing acknowledgment and emphasis on collaboration between the criminal justice system and substance abuse treatment indicates the need for high educational qualification, innovative behavioural therapies, and substantial medication knowledge to facilitate effective substance abuse treatment and recovery. The human service professional must also have sufficient knowledge of NIDA’s manual for providers, Principles of Drug Addiction Treatment to guide them in their provision of necessary therapies. Given the fact that drug abuse offenders may include other mental health issues, and that the society’s perceptions toward those re-entering may be so negative, the human service professional should also seek for means of self-care to avoid burn out or workplace stress. Assisting patients should be clearly cut from personal lives, such one does not experience burn out that may eventually result in high turnover. 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