Intensive Outpatient Treatment for Alcohol & Substance Use
Alcohol and Drug use treatment is not “one size fits all.” Treatment outcomes depend on the:
• extent and nature of the person’s problems;
• appropriateness of treatment;
• availability of additional services; and
• quality of interaction between the person and his or her treatment providers.
The Intensive Outpatient Program gives patients the opportunity to continue living at home and work in the community while attending treatment. Patients are able to implement the recovery skills developed throughout the program and have the opportunity to process their experience in a safe and supportive group environment. Outpatient treatment involves intense and focused participation, usually once a week, for a session lasting an hour. In addition to in- session work, there are usually behavioural tasks assigned by the therapist for the client to practice in his/ her daily routine.
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The goal of alcohol/ drug use treatment is to stop drug use and allow people to lead active lives in the family, workplace, and community. Effective treatments are backed by scientific evidence. They can include psychotherapies, medications or ideally their combination.
In addition to the extremely popular 12- Step approach, there are other kinds of psychotherapies which are scientifically proven to be effective such as: • Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: Seeks to help clients recognize, avoid, and cope with the situations in which they are most likely to abuse drugs.
• Motivational Incentives Approach: Uses positive reinforcement such as providing rewards or privileges for remaining drug free, for participating in counseling sessions, or for taking treatment medications as prescribed. • Motivational Interviewing & Motivational Enhancement Therapy: Uses strategies to encourage rapid and self-driven behavior change to stop drug use and help a patient enter treatment. • Group Therapy: Helps clients face their drug abuse realistically, come to terms with its harmful consequences, and boost their motivation to stay drug free. Participants learn how to resolve their emotional and personal problems without abusing drugs. 12- Step Facilitation: This therapy is grounded in the concept of alcoholism as a spiritual and medical disease. In addition to abstinence from alcohol, a major goal of the treatment is to foster the client’s commitment to participation in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) or Narcotics Anoynymous (NA). |
The best programs provide a combination of therapies and other services. Because addictive disorders and other mental disorders often occur together, both should be assessed and treated. 
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Medications are an important part of treatment for many patients, especially when combined with counseling and other behavioral therapies. Different types of medications may be useful at different stages of treatment: to stop drug abuse, to stay in treatment, and to avoid relapse. Medical detoxification is a necessary first step in the treatment of certain addictions but by itself does little to change long-term drug use. Supplement your medical treatment with a SAMROHA psychotherapeutic program for more effective results.
However, Outpatient treatment may not be suitable for everyone. Treatment recommendations are made on the basis of a comprehensive assessment and evaluation session.
Generally, Outpatient treatment is recommended for persons who:
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