Substance abuse has an enormous impact on economic and quality of life measures throughout the world. In more developed countries, overutilization of the most common forms of substances of abuse, alcohol and tobacco, is addressed primarily through prevention of substance use initiation and secondarily through the treatment of those with substance abuse or dependence. In general, these therapeut...

Specialized substance abuse treatment programs for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals are limited. Specialized treatment programs offer unique and tailored services to 'special populations' in order to provide effective treatment. The services offered in these programs are proven to be especially helpful and effective for LGBT individuals. Many researchers have suggested ...

BACKGROUND Research demonstrates that individuals in substance abuse treatment are more likely to die from tobacco addiction than from their primary addiction, yet historically substance abuse treatment has not included treatment for tobacco addiction. The purpose of our study was to (1) review the diffusion of state policies mandating the provision of tobacco cessation treatment as a condition...

Policymakers in the United States have long been perplexed by how to deal with substance abuse. As attitudes shifted in the 19th century toward viewing substance abuse as a medical problem akin to insanity rather than as a moral failing, greater emphasis was given to the potential for treatment. Thus, by the middle of the 19th century, states began developing substance abuse commitment codes an...

OBJECTIVES Prescription rates of methylphenidate (MPH) are sharply rising in most Western countries. Although it has been reported that MPH has abuse potential, little is known about the prevalence of intravenous (IV) abuse of MPH. The aim of the study was to investigate the prevalence of IV MPH abuse among treatment-seeking IV substance abusers in Iceland. METHODS This is a descriptive popul...

Policy and programmatic initiatives of the last decade have focused on increased coordination of services and expansion of prompt substance abuse treatment for mothers initially involved with child welfare services (CWS). Yet, little evidence has been amassed concerning the implications of this approach on the recurrent need for CWS. Data are from a large national probability sample of children...

Welfare caseloads have declined dramatically since 1996, assisted in part by a strong economy. However, many families have not made the transition to stable employment. As welfare reform reauthorization approaches, there has been an increasing discussion about welfare recipients who experience a variety of personal barriers to employment, or what have been characterized as hard-to-employ (HtE) ...

Title of Document: EXAMINING THE EFFECT OF THE LET’S ACT BEHAVIORAL ACTIVATION TREATMENT FOR DEPRESSION ON SUBSTANCE ABUSE TREATMENT DROPOUT Jessica F. Magidson, Master of Science, 2010 Directed By: Carl W. Lejuez, Professor, Department of Psychology Despite the prevalence of depression among substance users and the negative impact of depressive symptoms on substance abuse treatment outcomes, f...

INTRODUCTION Comorbid substance abuse is known to blunt response to treatment for underlying psychiatric disorders, but it has not been investigated in schizophrenia when comparing the effects of long-acting injectable antipsychotics with those of oral antipsychotics. METHODS This exploratory analysis compared once-monthly paliperidone palmitate (PP1M) with daily oral antipsychotics on time t...

OBJECTIVE The recent introduction of substance abuse treatment measures to the Health Plan Employer and Data Information Set (HEDIS) highlights the importance of this area for managed care organizations (MCOs). Particularly challenging are members first diagnosed in an emergency department (ED). STUDY DESIGN Retrospective claims analysis. METHODS Claims were abstracted for all members who u...