North Carolina is home to more than 120,000 active-duty military personnel, the fourth largest concentration in the nation. According to a new report by The Coalition, a group of 40 statewide organizations that advocates for North Carolina veterans, returning troops require greater access to substance abuse treatment.

Researchers have found evidence of alcohol and substance use problems among military personnel during pre- and post-deployment. Research has also found that those military personnel who were deployed and exposed to combat were significantly more likely to experience new-onset heavy drinking, binge drinking and alcohol related problems (Jacobson et al., 2008).

Of 350,000 OEF-OIF (Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom) veterans, 16 percent were diagnosed with alcohol or other substance abuse; 4 percent with alcohol dependence; and 2 percent with other substance dependence (Eggleston et al., 2009). Research also shows that when substance abuse or dependence is combined with post-traumatic stress disorder (prevalence rates of 13-22 percent), clinical problems such as psychosocial impairment, aggression and suicide increase.

(Source: www.carolinanewswire.com)

Labels: military, substance abuse, treatment

Britain's National Health Service (NHS) has recorded a near 100 percent increase in youth being treated for cocaine addiction over the past four years, and many experts are blaming the drug's newfound glamorous image for the spike in abuse.

Last year, 753 youth under the age of 18 sought treatment for cocaine addiction, compared with 453 in 2005-2006. Among these, at least 15 children were under the age of 12, 14 children were aged 12 to 14, and 169 children were aged 14 to 16.

Experts believe that young children and teens using "Class A" drugs are most likely to be using them as a coping mechanism or imitating a parent or family member who uses the substance. Harry Shapiro, director of communications at the charity Drugscope, said that in recent years all age groups have been moving away from heroin and crack and more often using cocaine.

He commented: "If young people are in a particularly risky or dysfunctional environment, alcohol or cannabis abuse is going to be more likely, and that makes them more likely to try other drugs. If you are in an environment where the house is used as a dealing hub or there are users regularly coming round to score, or if they come into contact with Class A substances through family members who are using them, then clearly that is an issue.

"Although they are coming forward for treatment, it's likely that their drug use is symptomatic of other problems that are going on at home or school. I don't think it's a question of children and teenagers hanging round street corners, buying off dealers, but that could be their future if they don't get treatment."

(Source: www.timesonline.co.uk)

Labels: addiction, cocaine, teens, treatment

New research indicates that medication used to treat drug addiction may be useful in treating gambling addiction.

Gambling addiction, or pathological gambling, is a condition in which a person people will continue to gamble in spite of significant negative consequences to themselves and their families. The study, conducted by Dr. Jon Grant of the University of Minnesota, indicates that pathological gamblers may respond positively to medications designed to treat impulsive or urge-driven behaviors.

Dr. Grant and his colleagues enrolled men and women with a primary diagnosis of pathological gambling into one of three medication studies. They then used tasks that measure cognition to explore the triggers and motivations for extreme gambling behavior. The researchers attempted to understand the gamblers' urges to bet in the context of two brain processes: urge and inhibition.

The researchers were able to separate pathological gamblers into two categories: those driven by urge (those who gamble when the desire to do so becomes too strong to resist), and those who lack normal inhibition of impulsive behaviors (those who cannot restrict behaviors even when urges are minimal).

Dr. Grant commented on the findings: "By understanding these different subtypes [of gamblers], we are able to target the core biology of the illness with individualized treatment. When we look at pathological gambling as an addiction and try to understand the sense of urge and inhibitions, we are able to target the treatment with medication more effectively."

The study findings were presented at the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology's annual meeting.

(Sources: www.wiredprnews.com; www.psychcentral.com)

Labels: gambling, medication, substance abuse, treatment

Experts fear that addiction in Russia is reaching such epidemic proportions that it may threaten the country's social and economic future. Russia has a long history of dealing with alcohol abuse, but now intravenous drug use has also hit frightening levels.

Heroin is one of the primary drugs taken intravenously in Russia. Heroin use is relatively new to Russia compared to the United States, exploding into popular culture there as recently as the 1990s. The drug caught on amid post-Soviet Union uncertainty, and the already unbalanced social structure was ill-equipped to handle to new problem.

In recent years, heroin from nearby Afghanistan has saturated the country. Russia's top drug enforcement official, Viktor Ivanov, blames the United States. Ivanov believes that the U.S. should institute aerial drug crop eradication programs in Afghanistan, similar to those currently funded by the U.S. in South America. Ivanov says that the U.S. is indifferent to the situation because drug production in Afghanistan is not an immediate geographical threat to the U.S. Meanwhile, Russia is suffering under the influx of heroin.

Ivanov commented, "Given the damage by Afghan heroin, we have to call it a weapon of mass destruction, selectively attacking the young, the future of our country."

Currently, Russia has one of the world's highest rates of drug-related deaths at approximately 80 deaths per day. Alcohol-related deaths comprise more than half of these, most often from alcohol-related accidents, violence or poisoning. In addition, Russia's population has been steadily declining since the 1990s, the result of depressed birth rates and growing death rates.

The Russian government does administer drug treatment programs, but Russian citizens are skeptical about their effectiveness. Methadone is illegal in Russia, and government programs seem to rely heavily on medication and appear to offer little in the way of counseling.

Denis Prokin, 32, went through several government-run addiction treatment programs only to start using again. Like many Russian addicts, he has abandoned government treatment to try a 12-step program run privately by a recovered heroin addict.

He feels that his treatment in the private program will give him the skills to stay clean: "The government programs I went through just isolate you and pump you full of pills. I didn't learn anything about myself. I got out and immediately started shooting up again. I know a lot more now, and when I finish here, I know where to find support groups."

(Source: www.scpr.org)

Labels: addiction, heroin, treatment

According to data from the United Kingdom's National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse, 1,645 women entered treatment for cocaine dependence for the first time in 2008, and three-quarters of these women were under the age of 35.

Women ages 18 to 25 who were dependent on cocaine were the fastest-growing group being treated, according to the agency's figures, and the average age of first use of cocaine was 21. Although heroin and crack addiction is declining overall in the United Kingdom, the number of women under 35 entering treatment for cocaine addiction has increased by 60 percent in the past four years.

Martin Barnes, chief executive of the charity DrugScope, commented on the data: "These figures are a reminder that cocaine use and cocaine problems cut across genders. Recent evidence shows a marked increase in the number of women and men using the drug, meaning that the number of people seeking help for cocaine-related problems is likely to continue."

Last year in the United Kingdom, women represented approximately 25 percent of adults receiving substance abuse treatment (about 55,600 women). About 15,440 of these women entered treatment for heroin and crack dependence.

(Source: timesonline.co.uk)

Labels: cocaine, heroin, treatment

California's budgetary woes are resulting in $1.2 billion in cuts. As part of these cuts, the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation will be reducing drug treatment for inmates by approximately 80 percent.

The current budget is providing funding to treat 12,164 inmates. Next year, this number will dwindle to 2,350 inmates. In addition, programs that currently provide nine months of treatment to inmates will be reduced to three months.

Darrol Monfils, a drug counselor at the California Institution for Women, commented on the impact of the cuts: "Those inmates will have very little treatment service to deal with behavioral issues that they've spent years to develop, most of which was put on them from an early age. Their chances of succeeding are slim.

"California prisoners will be paroling inmates with little or no rehabilitation. They will be paroling with the same behaviors as they did when they arrived. Now, having said that, there will be a few exceptions to the rule, but they will be the larger minority."

California officials fear that crime recidivism rates will increase as a result of the reduction in drug treatment programs. Substance abuse is a significant factor in the commission of non-violent and violent crimes in California.

(Source: www.contracostatimes.com)

Labels: drugs, treatment

Although Americans have become more accepting of substance abuse treatment over the last few years, some experts believe that drug treatment resources in the United States are alarmingly scarce. According to data from the federal government, approximately 7.6 million Americans needed treatment for illicit drug use in 2008 and only 1.2 million (16 percent) received treatment.

Recent research clearly indicates that treating addicts, even in lengthy residential programs, is ultimately less expensive than incarcerating them. Experts are urging money-strapped states to consider expanding substance abuse treatment as a cost-saving measure. However, many states are shying away from spending on drug treatment programs in the current economic climate, and some are even cutting successful existing programs. California, for instance, has cut all but a small amount of state funding from a successful prison-diversion and treatment program that voters approved in 2000.

The appointment of treatment expert Tom McLellan as deputy director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy in April was seen by some as an indication that the Drug Czar's office will be putting more emphasis on prevention and treatment in the future.

McLellan recently commented: "For the first time, it can truly be said that we know what to do -- we know the things that work. But do we have the economic and political willingness to put them into place? If we do, we'll see results.

"Law enforcement is necessary, but it's not sufficient. You need effective preventive services, addiction and mental health services integrated with the rest of medicine. You shouldn't have to go to some squalid little place across the railroad tracks."

(Source: www.msnbc.com)

Labels: drug-abuse, substance abuse, treatment

Providing substance abuse treatment to select groups of recipients could save the state of Oklahoma millions in Medicaid expenses, according to a Washington State economist. Dr. David Mancuso, a health economist with the Washington Department of Social and Health Services, testified this week to an Oklahoma House budget panel regarding the fiscal and social benefits of increasing substance abuse treatment services.

Dr. Mancuso described a program implemented in Washington State in 2005 that resulted in significant savings with fewer hospital visits and nursing home stays and declines in morbidity rates among the targeted population. The program expanded substance abuse treatment for adult Medicaid recipients who receive state-funded medical benefits. Dr. Mancuso reported that a $16.3 million state investment in the program in fiscal year 2008 resulted in a total savings to the state of more than $21 million.

He commented: "We've seen absolute declines in the per-member, per-month Medicaid costs -- even higher than we projected. What's basically happened in our state is that the debate is essentially over as to whether chemical dependency treatment will save money."

(Source: www.newsok.com)

Labels: Medicaid, substance abuse, treatment

Drug abuse is costing Scottish society 3.5 billion pounds (approximately $5.6 billion) per year.

Researchers confirm Scotland as the addiction capital of Europe -- Scottish addicts spend about 1.4 billion pounds ($2.3 billion) per year on purchasing drugs. Experts estimate that the cost of treating addicts and the impact of substance abuse on the criminal justice system adds about 2 billion pounds.

These figures, which are based on data from 2006, were generated by research conducted by the Scottish government. The data shows a 30 percent increase in the number of addicts injecting drugs since 2003.

"These figures underline all too clearly why we must continue to invest in treatment, focus that investment on the most effective range of treatment, care and rehabilitation services," said David Liddell, director of Scottish Drugs Forum, "including in areas like housing, family support and employability, and continue to address the underlying issues of poverty, deprivation and other social and health inequalities."

(Source: www.timesonline.co.uk)

Labels: addiction, substance abuse, treatment

A new study by British researchers shows that about half of cocaine and crack abusers are able to quit the drugs after six months of treatment.

For the study, researchers monitored the progress of more than 14,600 patients throughout England who were addicted to heroin, crack cocaine or both. Heroin addicts received oral methadone for at least six months, combined with counseling. Crack addicts received counseling, but not substitute drug therapy, since an approved medical substitute for crack does not currently exist.

After six months, 42 percent of heroin addicts and 57 percent of crack addicts reported that they had stopped using. Among participants addicted to both drugs, about half reported quitting both after six months.

Although the results of the study are considered encouraging, many substance abuse treatment experts warn that six months may not be long enough to provide adequate treatment. Many experts, including Dr. Thomas McLellan, deputy director of the White House's Office of National Drug Control Policy, compare treating heroin and crack addicts to managing patients with chronic conditions such as diabetes or high blood pressure.

"Addiction is best thought of as a chronic condition," McLellan said. "There is no cure, but we can manage it."

(Source: Associated Press)

Labels: addiction, cocaine, crack, methadone, treatment

Approximately 250,000 heroin-addicted individuals are incarcerated in the United States each year, yet many prison systems across the country still lack adequate medical treatment for heroin and opiate addiction.

Despite the fact that existing programs and research have demonstrated the social, medical and economic benefits of opiate replacement therapy (ORT), only half of all federal and state prison systems offer ORT with the medications methadone and buprenorphine, and only in very limited circumstances.

In addition, only 23 states provide treatment referrals for some inmates upon release from prison. Guidelines issued by both the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say prisoners should be offered ORT for treatment of opiate dependence.

"Pharmacological treatment of opiate dependence is a proven intervention, is cost-effective and reduces drug-related disease and reincarceration rates, yet it remains underutilized in U.S. prison systems," said Amy Nunn, ScD, the study's lead author and an assistant professor of medicine at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. "Improving correctional policies for addiction treatment could dramatically improve prisoner and community health as well as reduce both taxpayer burden and reincarceration rates."

Josiah Rich, MD, MPH, co-director of the Center for Prisoner Health and Human Rights at The Miriam Hospital and Alpert Medical School, believes that addiction treatment is as crucial as treatment of other long-term chronic diseases.

"Opiate addiction, like all forms of addiction, causes long-term changes to the structure and functioning of the brain, which is why it is classified as a disease," he said. "Addiction requires treatment just as other chronic diseases, like diabetes and cancer, do. Unfortunately, there is a large gap between the number of prisoners who require addiction treatment and those who actually receive it."

(Source: www.eurekalert.com)

Labels: addiction, heroin, opiates, substance abuse, treatment

The recent opening of the Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh has some residents worried about a surge in problem gambling. Studies have found that the closer people live to a casino, the more likely they are to become compulsive gamblers.

People living within 10 miles of a casino have twice the rate of gambling problems as other adults, according to a national study by John Welte, a researcher at Buffalo State College. He said it correlated with a similar study, used by a national commission on gambling a decade ago, which found that the rate of problem gambling among adults doubled within 50 miles of a casino.

Studies have also found that slot machines tend to attract more problem gamblers than any other type of gambling because they provide rich sensory stimulation and are programmed to present tantalizing near misses to users.

State officials are hoping that a newly created state-funded treatment system will assist problem gamblers. The program was created within the same bureau that oversees drug and alcohol treatment because of the similarity among the addictions.

Proponents of the casino argue that the revenue and jobs created by the casino more than compensate for the possible social toll.

(Source: www.post-gazette.com)

Labels: addiction, gambling, treatment

According to a story appearing this week in The New York Times, addiction experts are testing the use of heroin to treat heroin addicts who are unresponsive to other treatment methods. The study is the first rigorous test of the new approach performed in North America. The results are appearing in the current issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

In the study, researchers in Canada recruited 225 long-term heroin addicts who had failed to improve using other treatment methods, including methadone maintenance therapy. The researchers randomly assigned about half of the addicts to methadone treatment and the other half to receive daily injections of diacetylmorphine (the active ingredient in heroin).

After one year, 88 percent of those who received injections were still in the study and two-thirds of those had significantly reduced their heroin use and use of other illicit drugs. Of those in the methadone group, however, only 54 percent were still in the study and 48 percent had curbed their drug use.

Methadone has long been considered the best chemical treatment for heroin addiction because it is a chemical cousin of heroin that prevents withdrawal but does not produce the same high. Dr. Joshua Boverman, a psychiatrist at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, comments on the results of the study and the reason why methadone does not appear to work as well as heroin in the treatment of heroin addiction: "It showed that heroin works better than methadone in this population of users, and patients will be more willing to take it ... [perhaps the biggest weakness of methadone treatment is that] many patients don't want to take it; they just don't like it."

(Source: www.nytimes.com)

Labels: addiction, heroin, methadone, treatment

Experts on the Texas-Mexico border fear that border residents are more vulnerable to illicit drug use due to a number of factors, including poverty, lack of education, proximity to stockpiles of illegal narcotics and limited access to treatment. Local mental healthcare providers fear that young people are the most vulnerable of all.

This week, healthcare providers, law enforcement officials and substance abuse treatment providers from Texas and Mexico gathered to discuss new strategies for combating illicit drug use near the border. Attendees included representatives from 32 border counties. Experts say that if these counties were treated as a state, they would have the highest poverty level and lowest employment rates in the nation.

Experts are especially worried about area youth, who often become entangled with cartels because gainful employment is so difficult to find. Young people become involved with ruthless drug bosses, unaware of the all-too-often violent consequences, and have no idea that they can be charged with federal crimes for border-related drug activities.

(Source: www.elpasotimes.com)

Labels: drugs, treatment

The National Partnership on Alcohol Misuse and Crime (NPAMC), a body that contains representatives from more than 50 federal agencies, is meeting in Washington, D.C., this week to evaluate addiction treatment as a component of new justice programs.

NPAMC is a public-private partnership that brings together stakeholders on the issue of alcohol misuse and crime. The partnership works to effectively change the way the U.S. justice system manages and rehabilitates alcohol-involved offenders. The one-day conference will focus on the vital role of addiction treatment in the management of alcohol-involved offenders.

NPAMC President and Founder Stephen Talpins, a former national policy director for Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and a former DUI prosecutor for the Miami-Dade County State Attorney's Office, comments on the purpose of the partnership: "The justice system has been trying for decades to mitigate both the economic and public safety impact of alcohol misuse. Research is showing, time and again, that treatment-based programs for addicted offenders are, dollar for dollar, the most effective way to reduce the extraordinary burdens placed in justice agencies and to reduce the cycle of recidivism."

(Source: prnewswire.com)

Labels: addiction, alcoholism, treatment

This week, U.S. Rep. John Sullivan, a Republican from Oklahoma, officially requested a leave of absence from Congress for the rest of the month. Mr. Sullivan's request is the result of his current battle with alcohol addiction.

The lawmaker will be using the leave of absence to seek treatment for his addiction. He checked himself into a treatment facility last Thursday. Sullivan's official statement did not address how long he would be gone; however, based on typical treatment protocols, his treatment is expected to last at least 30 days.

Oklahoma Democratic Party Chairman Todd Goodman issued a statement supporting Sullivan, saying, "We wish him the best in his recovery from his illness, and our thoughts and prayers are with Congressman Sullivan and his family as they attend to this private matter."

(Source: www.tulsaworld.com)

Labels: alcoholism, treatment

Drugs approved for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer may help fight alcohol addiction, according to new research from the University of California, San Francisco.

The drugs, which inhibit a receptor for the Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF), have been shown to cause rats to spontaneously consume less alcohol when it was freely available to them, while their consumption of sugar water remained the same. In addition, flies and mice treated with this class of drugs grew more sensitive to alcohol.

(Source: www.sciencedaily.com)

Labels: addiction, alcohol, treatment

According to a story published this week in USA Today, Army commanders are failing to seek treatment for increasing numbers of soldiers who are testing positive for substance abuse.

A May 8 memo to Army commanders from General Peter Chiarelli stated that hundreds of soldiers involved in "substance abuse-related misconduct (including multiple positive urinalyses)" were not discharged, and that many also were not referred to the Army Substance Abuse Program for help.

General Chiarelli also expressed concerns that commanders may not be addressing substance abuse-related problems because of pressure to maintain numbers of soldiers. General Chiarelli stressed that identifying and treating substance abuse problems will help improve the Army's mental health and decrease the incidence of suicide. He commented, I am asking you to ensure that soldiers are provided the help that they need when they need it ... and that regulatory requirements regarding the referral and initiation of separation processing of substance abusers are enforced."

(Source: www.usatoday.com)

Labels: substance abuse, treatment

A 50-patient pilot study recently published in the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment indicated that participants who received addiction treatment online were more satisfied with their overall treatment, compared to participants who received counseling in traditional group sessions.

Officials commented, "An individual's pathway to recovery can be varied. There are some who will flourish with online counseling and others will need the face-to-face."

Individuals receiving online counseling were also more likely to "attend" counseling sessions. Online patients attended 92 percent of their scheduled sessions, while those in traditional treatment attended 76 percent.

(Source: www.explorebaltimorecounty.com)

Labels: addiction, treatment

The chief executive of Ireland's largest voluntary drug treatment project, Merchants Quay Ireland, is warning that extremely long wait times may be deterring addicts from getting the help they need.

Tony Geoghegan made the statement based on data published last month that show waiting times of up to two years for areas outside the capitol city of Dublin. Mr. Geoghegan points out that such long wait times are contrary to best practices in treating addiction because programs are unable to admit addicts when they reach a moment of wanting to stop using.

"It is in the nature of addiction that while an addict may get to a point where they want to get off the drug there is a conflicting compulsion to keep using too," he said. "So when they are motivated to get off it, it is vital the service is there to grab them at that point, to seize on the moment of motivation. There needs to be an emphasis on access to treatment. There is a concern that in a time of economic downturn people will have greater recourse to drugs."

(Source: www.irishtimes.com)

Labels: addicts, treatment

April 8, 2009, marked the 91st birthday of former first lady Betty Ford. With the founding of the Betty Ford Center in 1982, Betty Ford made a groundbreaking contribution to the treatment of addiction for women. Betty had many roles in her lifetime: model, dancer, first lady, feminist, and cancer survivor. But it was her experience battling and surviving her own addictions that led to her most memorable venture.

In April 1978, the year that her husband lost the presidential election to democratic candidate Jimmy Carter, Betty began losing her battle against substance addiction. Her family staged an intervention, and she was admitted to the U.S. Naval Hospital in Long Beach, Calif., for chemical dependency. During her treatment at the hospital, she first saw the need for a detoxification and treatment center that would offer services for each gender separately. In 1982, Betty joined with her friend Ambassador Leonard Firestone to co-found the nonprofit center.

(Source: www.findingdulcinea.com)

Labels: addiction, rehab, treatment

According to a new report from the University of Kentucky, 90 percent of the 1.4 million adolescents struggling with substance abuse do not get treatment, partly because not enough treatment programs are devoted to teens. The report was compiled by Hannah Knudsen, an assistant professor in the University of Kentucky Department of Behavioral Science and a researcher in the university's Center on Drug and Alcohol Research.

The report contained a random sampling of 154 programs. Knudsen looked at nine domains of quality. Overall, the cohort of programs received an average score. Addiction treatment services for teens in the Lexington, Kentucky area appear especially lacking. Of the 38 programs in the area, only six offer services for teens.

Knudsen commented, "One barrier has to do with the limited amount of funding that exists for substance abuse treatment. ... In addition, treating adolescents means that treatment programs need to find counselors with experience and training that helps them to work well with teenagers; that can also be a challenge." (Source: kykernel.com)

Labels: addiction, teenagers, treatment

A drug commonly prescribed to help with nausea is showing promise as a treatment for opioid addiction withdrawal. Scientists at Stanford University found that Zofran (ondansetron) prevents symptoms of withdrawal associated with drugs like heroin, morphine, and codeine, and that it does so without the drastic side effects of other medications that are currently used to treat these withdrawal symptoms. In a Stanford news release, Dr. Larry F. Chu, an assistant professor of anesthesia and lead author of the study, commented on the significance of the finding:

"Opioid abuse is rising at a faster rate than any other type of illicit drug use, yet only about a quarter of those dependent on opioids seek treatment. One barrier to treatment is that when you abruptly stop taking the drugs, there is a constellation of symptoms associated with withdrawal." (Source: www.forbes.com)

Labels: addiction, opiates, treatment

According to a new study by the University of Kentucky, only about 10 percent of teens in the United States with substance abuse problems are getting the help they need. The study estimates that over 1.2 million teens with substance abuse issues aren't accessing treatment.

Study author Hannah Knudsen commented on the situation, saying, "Part of this treatment gap may be driven by the limited availability of adolescent-only treatment services. Less than one-third of addiction programs in the U.S. have a specialized program for adolescents. Despite the public health significance of adolescent substance abuse and the knowledge that treatment can be effective for this group, services for them are less available than for adults. It means we lose our chance at early intervention, and that families may be unable to find services for their children in their communities." (Source: www.forbes.com)

Labels: teenagers, treatment

This week, the North Carolina Institute of Medicine released 32 recommendations for improving the state's substance abuse treatment services system. The recommendations include 11 priority items and an emphasis on implementing evidence-based prevention programs. Heeding the recommendations could cost the state as much as $9 million in 2010 and $12 million in 2011.

Other recommendations included incorporating the diagnosis and treatment of substance abuse disorders into primary health care settings. According to the report, the toll of substance abuse on the state's economy equaled more than $12 billion in 2004, but in 2006 the state spent only $138 million on substance abuse treatment services.

(Sources: www.citizen-times.com)

Labels: clinics, programs, treatment

The Oprah Winfrey Foundation has gifted $500,000 to a New Jersey-based substance abuse rehabilitation center called Integrity House, which provides treatment to female drug addicts. The money will be used for programming and renovation of the facilities.

The donation will be used in particular to expand the Integrity Initiative for Women and Children. This program works to meet the needs of women in recovery, in particular women with young children. The program promotes family reunification and stabilization, in addition to substance abuse treatment and intensive case management.

The funding will also allow Integrity House to complete renovations of a three-story Victorian home in Newark, New Jersey, which will be used to provide outpatient treatment and support services to 60 addicts and their children. (Source: www.prweb.com)

Labels: rehab, therapy, treatment

According to new data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia, about one in five tuberculosis (TB) patients in the United States reports abusing alcohol or drugs. In addition, those who report substance abuse seem to be more contagious and more difficult to treat. Researchers commented on the findings, saying, "Our results suggest that substance abuse is the most commonly reported modifiable behavior impeding TB elimination efforts in the United States. ... Tuberculosis control and substance abuse programs need to work together to simultaneously treat the diseases of addiction and TB." (Sources: www.sciencedaily.com)

Labels: childhood, treatment, tuberculosis