 What is the average length of treatment? |
 For adolescents (13-18 years) and college age (18-24 years), the average length of treatment is 12 weeks. |
| What is the average number of visits per member? |
| We see an average of approximately 18 group sessions and 6-8 individual sessions per adolescent, and slightly less for the college age group, 12 group sessions and 6 individual. |
What is your philosophy with members who are not compliant with your program? How long do you keep members in your program who are noncompliant with the treatment plan? |
| Within 2 months, if substantial
progress is not made, we set up a 30-day contract with the individual,
often recommending intensive outpatient treatment, if not inpatient.
Family sessions, and/or an increase in individual sessions may be needed,
and if the willingness to comply with our contract is not indicated
by the client, discharge from our program until a client is willing
to follow therapeutic recommendations is recommended. |
What are your expectations from members who attend your AODA program? |
| Our expectations at Connections start first with a willingness to be honest and move directly into abstinence from all mood-altering chemicals. We fully expect an improved sense of self-esteem, growing trust and communication within families, and improved trust in self. What should follow are behaviors and consequences that would be a sign of a decrease in legal issues, an improvement in all areas regarding academics, an increase in the network of sober peer-support, the incorporation of physical activity into one's life, and an increase of passion for personal interests. |
| Are there other community support services incorporated into a member's treatment? |
| Yes! We encourage the utilization of school support groups, sponsors, and/or mentors, and the continuity of communication with mental health providers, physicians, and attorneys. We also try to help with job opportunities and self-help aspects of treatment. |
| How long is your follow-up individual and groups? The information provided indicated that these are monthly, do you charge for these services? |
| Follow-up consists of involvement in group, which is free of charge after graduation, and monthly (or as needed) individual sessions. The individual sessions are billed for, which provides accountability, as well as opportunities to work on continued recovery issues. School and community speaking, and mentoring others are also encouraged. |
| Please further describe the "mentoring through other teens or med students with the UW". |
| Shelly has worked with UW medical students for the past 10 years, having them help with academic tutoring for her clients. Our program benefits from recovering AA/NA young, sober people accompanying many of our teens to meetings and serving as sponsors. We have various graduates of our program mentoring teens, and parents mentoring parents. Mentors are available for emotional support, as well as planning and participating in the fun, social activities that are a vital piece in of the success of our program and of recovery. |
| On average, how often are family meetings? How many do you do? |
| At intake, all parents come in to meet the therapist working with their child to talk about a plan of action. Parents are free to join in any one-on-one sessions for feedback and building communication skills. Family sessions are recommended in order to change the family dynamic and practice the new skills that both parent and teen are learning. The number of sessions varies on the fragility of the family, but generally once every 3 weeks is recommended. The goal of the family program is to help families remember their bond and be willing to work on negotiating with respect. It takes approximately 12-16 weeks for average success. |
| You mentioned the "parents group". Please further describe what this is, who is involved, who leads the service, etc. |
| Parents are offered
a constellation of services to choose from depending on their needs
and desires. Currently, we have 2 groups; one for couples, and a Mother's
groups. They consist of 1 1/2 hour sessions for a period of 8 weeks.
If participants in the Mother's group wish to continue longer, the fee
is reduced. The groups cover education, a topic each week, such as boundaries,
role-modeling adult behavior, and parenting without anger, as well as
covering the previous week's experiences. Its important that the parents
have the opportunity to hear and offer feedback to each other. Currently
Terry Bucheger-Aissa has been leading the groups and communication with
parents. We are also looking forward to our newest addition, Kari Blackburn's
involvement with counseling and supporting parents and families here
at connections. |
| Are all members expected to do 12 weeks of groups and individuals? Is the treatment plan for a member more generalized or specific to needs? |
| Each treatment plan is much more specific to each individuals needs! We do encourage group sessions, as statistics on adolescents show treatment is much more effective in groups. We ask most kids to try at least 3-4 group sessions before rejecting the idea. Kids that are working or that have extra-curricular involvement in sports, etc., are encouraged to make it to one group each week. If the primary diagnosis is dependence, we encourage twice each week. Sometimes individual therapy only may be appropriate for individuals that suffer from an anti-social personality disorder. Each person is unique and although we follow the same general course, exact paths may vary. In addition to group and individual therapy, mentors will be assigned, oftentimes specifically tailored to a kids needs. For example, a teen without a father will have a male mentor assigned. We also look at other issues that may need to be addressed such as psychiatric evaluation, trauma, mental health counseling or anger issues. We also have been encouraging alternatives they may be interested in exploring for self-help, such as yoga and relaxation skills. |