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The National Institute on Drug Abuse has outlined some principles that are crucial for a drug and alcohol treatment program to be effective. Below are some of the key things that have to happen.
People go into a drug rehab center with one purpose in mind: to get help for their drug addictions. However, not all drug rehab programs are the same, and there are certain elements to programs that will lead them to have a higher success rate than other programs. Scientific research has shown that there are certain elements that are important for effective drug rehabilitation to take place.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse has used this scientific research to develop a list called "Thirteen Principles of Effective Drug Addiction Treatment." This list lays out strategies and fundamentals that an addiction treatment program should consider when developing their treatment. Here are a few of their recommendations:
No single treatment is appropriate for all individuals. Each person comes into a drug rehab program with their own, unique history. This includes their medical, family and mental health history, which helps to paint a pattern of why they became addicted in the first place.
Treatment needs to be readily available. If a person has made the decision to enter drug or alcohol rehab, then they need to be able to have access to help as soon as possible. A delay in treatment can lead to addicts having a change of heart and deciding against treatment.
Effective treatment attends to multiple needs. This recognizes that a rehab program needs to be about more than just addiction treatment and treat the underlying reasons that a person becomes addicted to drugs or alcohol in the first place. Without dealing with these problems, there is little chance for an addiction program to work.
Treatment needs to be flexible. Patient needs can change during the course of treatment, especially as people progress through various stages of the rehab process. A treatment program needs to have the flexibility to deal with the individual needs of the patient and make last-minute changes that are for the good of the patient.
- Annabeth Morrison is a freelance writer living in Port Royal, Pennsylvania. She has written for major magazines, newspapers and online news sites.
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