Evaluation of the Iowa State Residential Substance Abuse Treatment Program, 1998-1999

This study sought (1) to set up a system to evaluate the
operations and effectiveness of The Other Way (TOW) residential
substance abuse treatment program at the Clarinda Correctional Facility
in Clarinda, Iowa, and (2) to assist program staff in developing and
implementing intake, discharge, and follow-up instruments and evaluation
protocols to document inmate characteristics and changes over time
related to substance use/abuse, mental health, social functioning, and
criminal behavior and attitudes. Inmates are referred to this program if
they have an identified need for residential-level substance abuse
treatment and are within 12 months of release consideration. TOW is a
voluntary, six-month long program that works with inmates to identify
the causes of their addictive behaviors and encourage changes in
unacceptable behaviors and criminal thinking. The sample for this study
consists of adult male inmates at the Clarinda Correctional Facility
between January 1998 and March 1999. The first point of data collection
was the intake assessment. At intake, each subject completed an intake
packet consisting of several instruments that measured variables
relevant to TOW program goals. Each inmate was also given an Addiction
Severity Index (ASI) interview by a counselor at intake. Upon discharge
from the program, each subject completed a discharge packet, which
contained instruments slightly different from those in the intake
packet. Instruments were chosen for reliability and validity, ease of
administration, potential for dual clinical and evaluation use, and
whether they duplicated any existing efforts. Versions of the following
instruments were included in both the intake and discharge packets: the
Colorado Cognitive Assessment Questionnaire, Circumstances, Motivation,
and Readiness (CMR) Scales for Substance Abuse Treatment, the Social
Provisions Scale (SPS), the Self-Help Questionnaire, and the STEPS
Questionnaire. A consumer satisfaction survey was also administered at
the discharge interview. Variables obtained from answers to the ASI
include gender, living situation, date of birth, race, religion, length
of incarceration, medical status, education and employment history,
sources of financial support, family/social relationships including
abuse history, psychiatric status, drug and alcohol use including kinds
of drugs used, length of use, age at first use, and frequency of use for
each drug, personal problems caused by drug use, drug treatment history,
legal history, and family history of drug, alcohol, and psychological
problems. Intake assessment variables included are related to social
attitudes, and include variables on life goals and the subjects' own
views of their achievability, how subjects thought their friends viewed
them, how wrong subjects thought certain illegal acts were, and
criminal acts by the subjects' friends in the past six months. Discharge
packet variables include the same variables on social attitudes as the
intake packet as well as variables obtained from answers to the SPS
relating to the amount of social support subjects felt they had, past
involvement with self-help groups, and life attitudes related to
drug/alcohol use.