Background: There are known health disparities in adolescent substance treatment access and engagement. The purpose of this project is to compare outcomes from school- and clinic-based substance treatment and to evaluate if providing school-based substance treatment reduces disparities in treatment access and engagement. Method: This quality…

The objective of this study was to develop a school-based substance treatment model and evaluate the feasibility and preliminary outcomes of treatment in a school-based setting to improve access to treatment for adolescents with substance use disorders. This study provided care to 41 youths (12 to 18 years old) in three school-based health…

Purpose: This review evaluates the evidence of the effects of multidimensional family therapy (MDFT) on drug use reduction in young people for the treatment of nonopioid drug use. Method: We followed Campbell Collaboration guidelines to conduct a systematic review of randomized and nonrandomized trials. Meta-analytic methods were used to…

Background: An Internet-based relapse prevention supplement to adolescent substance abuse treatment programming is a promising modality to reinforce treatment gains and enhance recovery; however, an evidence base is lacking. Objective: To assess the efficacy of the online Navigating my Journey (NmJ) program. Methods: 129 adolescent-aged…

The adolescent drug problem places a huge toll on society and a heavy burden on the criminal justice system. Research regarding the benefits of therapeutic community (TC) treatment for adolescents has shown it to be effective. Despite the ability of therapeutic communities to lower drug relapse and reduce criminality, a great deal remains unknown…

This article seeks to address how our understanding of the recovery process and resulting supports can be made more comprehensive: How can links from treatment to home to school to communities be made so that there are fewer and fewer recovery gaps for adolescents? Using the ecology of recovery model developed by White (2009) as the impetus for…

This study investigated the use of the Massachusetts Youth Screening Instrument (MAYSI-2) to screen for co-occurring disorders in an adolescent outpatient treatment program and to provide a preliminary assessment of those needs. The MAYSI-2 identified youth with co-occurring disorders and the results support existing recommendations for distinct…

Accurate evaluation and documentation of the efficacy of recovery schools can be vital to the continuation and expansion of these beneficial resources. A very limited data set currently exists that examines the value of specific schools established to support adolescents and young adults in recovery; additional research is necessary. The following…

Training in the Fairy Tale model of trauma-informed treatment was provided to clinical and direct care staff working with 53 youth in a residential treatment facility. Compared to the year prior to training, in the year of the training the average improvement in presenting problems was increased by 34%, time to discharge was reduced by 39%, and…

Objective: To qualitatively explore how treatment-involved youth retrospectively contextualize relapse from substance use. Methods: Fourteen focus groups were conducted with 118 youth (78.3% male; 66.1% Latino) enrolled in participating substance abuse treatment programs (4 young adult and 10 adolescent) throughout Los Angeles County. Transcripts…

The effectiveness of active aftercare for adolescents with alcohol use disorders in maintaining treatment gains is evaluated. Findings show that active aftercare interventions were effective in slowing the posttreatement relapse of alcohol use in adolescents. Impacts of active aftercare on number of drinking days and heavy drinking days are also…

This paper examines the association of psychosocial factors and long-term drug use behaviors (year-5.5) among adolescents with a substance dependence disorder. One group received treatment with a 12-Step approach (n = 159) and one group was on a waiting list (n = 62). Four psychosocial factors (deviant behavior, peer drug environment,…

Assesses the relationship between discharge status and therapeutic outcomes after discharge from a residential treatment program for adolescents. Results of this study did not indicate superior outcomes for the planned discharge group. Several issues are raised regarding the use of discharge status as a performance indicator and recommendations…

A statewide treatment outcomes monitoring system included baseline interviews with 387 adolescents and 363 parents representing 37 programs. This study examined adolescent and parent predictors of treatment completion and 6-month outcomes. Only 21.4% of the adolescents reported abstinence for the 6 months following treatment; however, marijuana…

Compliance during drug treatment reflects treatment engagement. Examines self-assessed compliance, behavioral compliance, and their influences, among adolescents in treatment. Stepwise logistic regression showed that desire for help was significantly related to more compliance. Discusses the implications of these findings for adolescent treatment…