Coerced or involuntary treatment comprises an integral, often positive component of treatment for addictive disorders. By the same token, coercion in health care raises numerous ethical, clinical, legal, political, cultural, and philosophical issues. In order to apply coerced care effectively, health care professionals should appreciate the indications, methods, advantages, and liabilities associated with this important clinical modality. An expert panel, consisting of the Addiction Committee of the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry, listed the issues to be considered by clinicians in considering coerced treatment. In undertaking this task, they searched the literature using Pubmed from 1985 to 2005 using the following search terms: addiction, alcohol, coercion, compulsory, involuntary, substance, and treatment. In addition, they utilized relevant literature from published reports. In the treatment of addictions, coercive techniques can be effective and may be warranted in some circumstances. Various dimensions of coercive treatment are reviewed, including interventions to initiate treatment; contingency contracting and urine testing in the context of psychotherapy; and pharmacological methods of coercion such as disulfiram, naltrexone, and the use of a cocaine vaccine. The philosophical, historical, and societal aspects of coerced treatment are considered.
Coercion as a strategy for treatment of addiction is an effective but often negatively perceived approach. The authors review current policies for involuntary commitments and explore coercive dimensions of treating alcohol and drug dependence in the workplace, sports, and through professional licensure. Gender-specific issues in coercion are considered, including evidence for improved treatment retention among pregnant and parenting women coerced via the criminal justice system. Social security disability benefits represent an area where an opportunity for constructive coercion was missed in the treatment of primary or comorbid substance use disorders. The availability of third-party funding for the voluntary treatment of individuals with substance use disorders has decreased. This unmet need, coupled with the evidence for positive clinical outcomes, highlights the call for implementing socially sanctioned mechanisms of coercion.
Aromatherapy can be an important tool in the treatment of substance abuse and co-occurring disorders. When used by trained specialists, essential oils are safe, simple, and effective both in alleviating symptoms as well as helping increase self-awareness and transform consciousness. Olfaction is a powerful sensory modality, and olfactory receptors have been found in nearly every tissue of the body and parts of the Central Nervous System (CNS) relevant to addiction and motivation. Essential oils are widely used to support and alleviate nervous symptom disorders such as those triggered by addiction (i.e., anxiety, sleep problems, panic attacks, depression, stress etc.). The available scientific literature supports the traditional uses of the most common essential oils in this domain and is encouraging for the continued development of these powerful plants extracts for addiction support.
Equine-assisted psychotherapy is a promising emerging treatment for clients with substance-use and co-occuring disorders that can cause rapid transformation away from self-defeating thought and behavior patterns to a deeper sense of self-awareness, connectedness, and resilience. Reviewed here are the unique characteristics of horses as prey and as herd animals willing to interact with humans. This section will show how they become powerful therapeutic partners. Standards of practice of several equine-assisted therapy organizations are introduced. Studies and data on the effectiveness of equine-assisted therapy in substance use and co-occuring disorders are discussed.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.