Perspectives on Adolescent Residential Substance Abuse Treatment: When Are Adolescents Done?

Abstract

Objectives The study evaluated responses from adolescents in substance abuse treatment, their parents, and treatment staff to the question of what constitutes treatment success. Methods Semistructured interviews were conducted with 28 adolescents, 30 parents, and 29 staff at three residential substance abuse treatment programs in two states. Data were coded and organized into themes by respondent type. Results Respondents reported knowing when treatment was no longer needed based on changes in adolescents’ substance use, treatment-related and other behaviors, and attitudes and character. A fourth category of responses indicated respondents’ ambiguity regarding successful completion of substance abuse treatment. Little concurrence was found among adolescents, parents, and treatment center staff to indicate criteria suggesting that discharge is appropriate. Conclusions Substance abuse treatment programs and their clients may benefit from ensuring that staff, parents, and adolescents are aware of treatment goals to promote more effective treatment and improve collaboration toward the adolescent’s recovery.

A comparison of treatment perspectives between adolescent males in residential treatment for substance use and their counselors

“…Rather, this study is indicative of the discrepancy in perception of therapeutic progress, particularly with this population. Our results may be comparative to the ambiguous findings of Wisdom and Gogel (2010), in which adolescents indicated readiness for discharge and parents indicated uncertainty about discharge. Approaching counseling, especially when working with adolescents in this setting, with the knowledge that counselors and adolescent clients may likely disagree on the extent of therapeutic progress is an important consideration.…”

“…When Wisdom and Gogel (2010) studied various perspectives on the goals of adolescent residential substance abuse treatment, they found over one third of the treatment providers did not present well-defined, "evidence-based criteria for treatment goals" (p. 5). On the other hand, the perception of one third of the adolescents in the treatment center was that their issues did not necessitate substance abuse therapy; thus, they had no goals for treatment.…”

“…From this body of research, progress related to meeting therapeutic goals for adolescent clients was tied to decreases in client symptomatology for adolescents in acute care psychiatric hospitalization, also referred to as crisis residence (American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry [AACAP], 2015). Wisdom and Gogel (2010) aimed to explore constructs that suggest that adolescents are ready to be discharged from residential treatment for issues of substance abuse. Wisdom and Gogel interviewed adolescents, their respective parents, and staff members to explore various perspectives about adolescent discharge readiness.…”

The long sleep-over: the lived experience of teenagers, parents and staff in an adolescent psychiatric unit

“…There were consumer discrepancies in Acri et al's (2012) Finally, in their study of adolescent, parent and staff perspectives also on substance abuse treatment, Wisdom and Gogel (2010) showed that more than a third of staff could not provide clear criteria for …”