In-Home Continuing Care Services for Substance-Affected Families: The Bridges Program

• Published in: Social work (New York) 2001-07, Vol.46 (3), p.267-277
• Main Authors: Gruber, Kenneth J., Fleetwood, Thomas J., Herring, Michael W.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Addiction; Addiction Counseling; Adolescent; Adult; Adults; Alcoholism; Battered child syndrome; Behavior Problems; Child; Child Abuse; Child care; Child Caregivers; Child Rearing; Child Welfare; Continuing care; Counseling Techniques; Drug abuse; Drug Rehabilitation; Families; Families & family life; Family; Family Functioning; Family Involvement; Family Life; Family preservation; Family Problems; Family Programs; Family Roles; Family Stability; Family Therapy - methods; Female; Home Care Services; Home health care; Home Management; Home Programs; Humans; Hyperactivity; in-home services; Intervention; Male; Models, Psychological; Mothers; Narcotics; Parent Child Relations; Parent Responsibility; Parent Training; Parenting; Parents; Practice; Preservation; Programmes; Rehabilitation; Relapse; Social aspects; Social conditions; Social service; Social Services; Social Work; Social Work - methods; Sons; Substance Abuse; substance abuse recovery; Substance abuse treatment; Substance abusers; Substance-Related Disorders - rehabilitation; United States; USA; Welfare Services; Work with families
• ISSN: 0037-8046; 1545-6846
• DOI: 10.1093/sw/46.3.267

Addressing substance abuse in families is an important concern for the social work field. This article presents a preliminary view of a continuing care substance abuse recovery services program designed to assist the substance-affected family. The intervention approach is a blended model of substance abuse recovery work and family preservation. Services are directed at helping substance-abusing parents with "recovering" their role with their families, developing support for their recovery work, and helping them gain the education and skills they need for effective parenting, supportive family involvement, and avoidance of drugs and alcohol. The program focuses on helping substance abusers and their families achieve relapse prevention by addressing functioning in four domains: individual actions and cognitions, individual recovery actions, family actions and cognitions, and family recovery actions. The article presents two case examples to highlight the efficacy of the intervention model and the general positive effect continuing care services are having on substance-affected families.