Process Evaluation of Residential Substance Abuse Treatment Programs in Maine, 1999-2000

The State of Maine Department of Corrections (MDOC) and the
Office of Substance Abuse (OSA) at the Maine Department of Mental
Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services opened the Key
Maine Therapeutic Community (TC) in March 1999, and its Transitional
Treatment Program (TTP) for adult male inmates in January
2000. Spectrum Behavioral Services, Inc. (SBC) was subcontracted to
implement the program, which was located at the Maine Correctional
Facility in South Windham and the Pre-Release Center in Hallowell. The
United States Department of Justice Residential Substance Abuse
Treatment (RSAT) funded the initiative. This study was undertaken as a
process evaluation of the program. To accomplish the aims of the
process evaluation, research staff examined both program and
client-level data that were collected throughout the first 15 months
of the Key Maine TC's operation, a period that included the initial
start-up period for the TTP. Part 1, Baseline Data, contains
information on inmates, including age, ethnic group, education level,
timing of all diplomas or degrees they had received, reasons for
stopping school, marital and/or relationship status and history, and
number and ages of children. The file also includes information on the
last six months before being incarcerated, such as attendance at
religious services, kind of housing and time spent there, as well as
whom they lived with and the behavior of the inmate and their living
companions in terms of alcohol and drug use. Also, there is
information about how respondents supported themselves financially,
including employment status and job information, such as number of
days worked, number of jobs, part-time or full-time status, income,
supplemental income, drug and alcohol use effects on employment, and
whether they had dependants to support. In addition to information on
the six months before incarceration, the file provides information on
the inmate's substance abuse behaviors over his lifetime, including
specific drugs used, the frequency used, and the age at which use of
particular substances began. Information on substance abuse behaviors,
such as specific substances used and frequency used in the last 30
days, is also recorded. Other variables in Part 1 focus on whether
inmates' substance abuse had caused problems in major areas of their
lives, such as family, employment, school, physical and mental health,
relationships, and other substance abuse treatment received, including
the type of treatment, duration of treatment, main substance abused,
and reasons for entering treatment. Self-report data are available on
each inmate's lifetime history of illegal activities, including, but
not limited to, arrest history. This includes the offense(s) for which
the inmate was currently serving time, as well as past offenses, jail
time served, number of times incarcerated, illegal activities in which
the inmate engaged during the last six months before incarceration,
and time spent in probation during the last six months before
incarceration. Information on visitors received during time in jail
and contact (phone calls and letters) with others while in jail are
included, as well as personal history information concerning the
inmate's relationship with family and the activities they engaged in
together. There is information on the friends the inmate had during
the six months before incarceration, such as their education level,
employment status, and relationship with family. Additional variables
include whether the inmate reported having a history of child abuse,
with details such as age at time of abuse, relationship with the
abuser, frequency of abuse, perceived association of child abuse
history to the inmate's substance abuse, the inmate's history as both
victim of and perpetrator of violent crimes and weapon use, the
inmate's sexual activity during the six months before incarceration,
and his opinions about the chances of contracting HIV/AIDS. Other
items pertain to behaviors that increase the risk of contracting
HIV/AIDS and the inmates' feelings about HIV/AIDS, such as whether
they worried about contracting the virus, whether they would want to
know if they had the virus, whether they knew how to protect
themselves, whether they had altered their behavior to reduce their
chances of infection, and their perceptions regarding the likelihood
of contracting HIV/AIDS. Part 1 data also provide information on
inmates' physical and mental health, along with medications taken and
diagnosed mental disorders. Interviewers' ratings concerning the
inmates' behavior during the interview and whether the interviewer
believed the inmates would complete the program are assessed across 16
areas. Part 2, Retention Data, indicates how long inmates spent in the
program and the reason for their discharge. Part 3, Score Data,
provides the inmates' psychological and motivational scores for the
short self-esteem index, the short depression index, motivation and
readiness and treatment engagement, and when they were tested. Also
included are scores for counselor rapport and counselor
competence. Part 4, Services Data, records the number of times an
inmate had used particular services, such as clinical groups, clinical
supervision, educational sessions, encounter groups, group counseling
sessions, individual counseling sessions, seminars, and 12-step
sessions.