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KAP KEYS Based on TIP 38
Integrating Substance Abuse Treatment
and Vocational Services



        CSATs
Knowledge Application Program


KAP Keys
For Clinicians

Based on TIP 38
Integrating Substance
Abuse Treatment and
Vocational
Services



U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
Center for Substance Abuse Treatment
www.samhsa.gov

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KAP KEYS Based on TIP 38
Integrating Substance Abuse Treatment and Vocational
Services



These KAP Keys were developed to accompany the Treatment
Improvement Protocol (TIP) Series published by the Center for
Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT), Substance Abuse and
Mental Health Services Administration. These KAP Keys are
based entirely on TIP 38 and are designed to meet the needs
of the busy clinician for concise, easily accessed "how-to" infor
mation. 
For more information on the topics in these KAP Keys, readers
are referred to TIP 38.
Introduction



TIP 7, Screening and Assessment for Alcohol and Other Drug
 Abuse Among Adults in the Criminal Justice System (1994)
 BKD138
TIP 12, Combining Substance Abuse Treatment With
 Intermediate Sanctions for Adults in the Criminal Justice
 System (1994) BKD144

TIP 17, Treatment Planning for Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse
 Treatment for Adults in the Criminal Justice System (1995)
 BKD165
TIP 35, Enhancing Motivation for Change in Substance Abuse
 Treatment (1999) BKD342
TAP 18, Checklist for Monitoring Alcohol and Other Drug
 Confidentiality Compliance (1996) BKD722
TAP 24, Welfare Reform and Substance Abuse Treatment
Confidentiality: General Guidance For Reconciling Need to
Know and Privacy (1999) BKD336
Other Treatment Improvement Protocols (TIPs)
that are relevant to these KAP Keys:

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Prevocational Counseling
Activities
1

KAP KEYS Based on TIP 38
Integrating Substance Abuse Treatment and Vocational
Services 

Prevocational services are those that are typically provided
before an individual begins the job-seeking process. Although
some clients have work-related skills that might be recovered,
updated, or refined through a training process, others have no
job skills and need to develop them for the first time. Following
is a list of the kinds of prevocational counseling that can be
used. 

Career Exploration
 Generate an autobiography on vocational and educational
experiences
 Visit community resources including libraries, stores, 
businesses 
 Read newspaper for specific purpose (e.g., employment
trends, want-ads)
 Watch educational and interactive programs to stimulate 
discussion and practice new behavior

Structured Activity
 Take a battery of vocational tests
 Pursue and perform volunteer assignments
 Take continuing education courses to determine and 
validate interests 
 Write a resume

Psychosocial-spiritual development
 Keep a diary of daily activities 
 Participate in role-playing exercises (e.g., for developing 
interpersonal communication skills, expressing needs and
wants without appearing demanding)
 Complete values clarification, skills assessment, and 
personal traits exercises

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Vocational Information 
From Initial Screening
2

KAP KEYS Based on TIP 38
Integrating Substance Abuse Treatment and Vocational
Services 

The alcohol or drug counselor can complete an initial screen
ing for vocational issues. Following is a list of the kinds of voca
tional information that the counselor can gather.

Educational History
Construct a brief description of the client's educational history
in order to evaluate current academic functioning and potential
to engage in training that could range from remedial to
advanced. The history should include the following: 
 Highest school grade completed, and when 
 Client attitude toward education and future training (verbal
report may differ from behavior)
 Favorite subjects, and why
 Extracurricular activities 
 Potential for future education and/or training

Standardized achievement tests of math, reading, and general
learning ability are often used to augment interview questions.
The client's educational history can also be used to indicate
vocation-related interests and values.

Vocational History
Construct a brief description of the client's work history in
order to estimate current and potential vocational functioning.
Minimally, ask questions addressing the following:
 Types of occupations in which the client has worked
 Chronology of jobs within the last 15 years, including the job
title, name of employer, length of employment at each job,
and primary job duties
 Reason for leaving each job
 Client-identified work skills and any certifications
 Client's relationship with supervisor and coworkers 
 Favorite and least favorite jobs, and why
 Work-related ambitions and goals

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Early-stage Vocational 
Issues and Approaches
3



Activities of Daily Living
 Learn effective socialization skills
 Interact without the use of drugs, with people who have not
used drugs
 Engage in activities of daily living
 Begin to incorporate more healthful habits into daily living
 Learn appropriate dress, hygiene, walk, talk, and eye contact
 Learn to manage money
 Open and maintain bank accounts, budgets, and save
money
 Change living situation, if necessary
 Acquire stable house away from people currently using
drugs; reunite with spouse, parents, or children
 Check for any outstanding arrests on the client's records and
follow up on results
 Clean up legal record
 Increase independence and responsibility
 Assume responsibility for managing money and solving prob
lems
 Improve communication
 Talk to new people in new ways
 Learn to structure and be responsible for time
 Manage time, calender, appointments
 Organize documents, e.g., social security card, birth certifi
cate, military discharge papers, driver's license, diploma,
training certificates
 Get credentials in order and ready to present
 Consider spirituality as a part of daily living
 Determine sources for spiritual expression

Education
 Evaluate educational level, skills, and potential
 Take tests, assess deficits, plan for remediation if required
 Examine attitude toward school
 Highlight positive points
 Consider long term educational and vocational goals
 Consider benefits of further education


Continued on Back
KAP KEYS Based on TIP 38
Integrating Substance Abuse Treatment and Vocational
Services

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KAP KEYS Based on TIP 38
Integrating Substance Abuse Treatment and Vocational
Services
Employment
 Develop an understanding of the world of work
 Read career literature; visit work sites
 Adopt an identity as a worker
 Explore opportunities to be productive
 Examine work experience for past success and failures 
 Develop a realistic picture of accomplishments and problems
 Consider potential for transferability of skills
 Compare skill to job demands

Vocational Skills
 Evaluate vocational level
 Take test; engage in a situational assessment 
 Evaluate courses that have been taken; differentiate from
courses that have been completed
 Reexamine prior training and what is still current
 Consider current vocational skills and their potential for
employment
 Perform skills assessment
 Examine desires for training
 Consider why further training is necessary; consider the con
text of specific goals

Psychosocial-Spiritual Values
 Explore alternatives to substance-using lifestyle and personal
value system
 Explore goals, interests, abilities, strengths, weaknesses, and
personal values
 Learn to consider personal and spiritual needs
 Identify and acknowledge specific talents
 Develop the concepts of lifestyle change and psychosocial
development
 Have a stable home and intact family: receive regular paychecks
 Examine the relationship of substance abuse to other life issues
 Consider ways to achieve positive parenting, good health, and
economic independence from welfare and other support systems
 Revise one's self-concept in relation to independent function
ing at home, school and work
 Develop a positive outlook

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Assessment Tools 4



The following are instruments that can be used to screen
clients for various areas of vocational interest.
Categories of Interests
 Geist Picture Interest Inventory 
 Kuder Occupational Interest Survey
 Reading-Free Vocational Interest Inventory 
 The Self-Directed Search
 Strong Interest Inventory 
 Vocational Preference Inventory Interest Checklist
 Wide Range Interest Opinion Test

Vocational Functioning
 Addiction Severity Index (ASI)
 Career Attitudes and Strategies Inventory
 Career Thoughts Inventory
 My Vocational Situation 
 Wonderlic Basic Skills Test
 Work Potential

Functioning in Particular Areas Related to Employability
 ASI
 Employability evaluation
 Employability plan
 Interview information
 Placement readiness checklist
 Previous work experience
 Readiness planning checklist

Emotional Functioning
 Interview information 
 Tennessee Self-Concept Scale
 The Psychological-Screening Inventory 
 Verified work history



Continued on Back
KAP KEYS Based on TIP 38
Integrating Substance Abuse Treatment and Vocational
Services 

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KAP KEYS Based on TIP 38
Integrating Substance Abuse Treatment and Vocational
Services

Intellectual and Aptitude Functioning
 ASI
 Adult Basic Learning Examination (ABLE)
 Educational experience and records
 General Aptitude Test Battery (GATB)
 Microcomputer Evaluation, Screening and Assessment
(MESA)
 Minnesota Clerical Test
 Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test
 Revised Beta Examination
 Slosson Intelligence Test

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Making a Referral to a 
Vocational or Training Program
5



When a substance abuse treatment program refers a client to
an outside agency providing vocational services, it has three
choices:

1. A counselor can give the client the agency's name, address,
and telephone number and urge him to make an appoint
ment.
2. A counselor can call the agency for the client and set up an
appointment.
3. The program can invite the agency to interview clients
and/or provide services on its premises.

The first option requires no communications between the 
program and the vocational or training agency; thus no con
sent is required. However, the first option does require the
client to take the initiative, something he may have difficulty
doing. The second option requires the client to sign a consent
form permitting the counselor to call the agency and set up an
appointment. The third option provides the path of least resist
ance for the clienthe need only present himself to the outside
agency on the day it schedules services at the program. By
appearing to request services from the outside agency, the
client is making a disclosure about her participation in treat
ment and no consent form is required. However, if the program
sets up appointments for clients beforehand, it will need a con
sent form signed by the client before it can present the list of
applicants for services to the vocational or training program.
And, as noted above, the substance abuse treatment program
must have a proper, signed consent form if it and the vocation
al or training agency are to communicate in the future about
any client they both serve.
KAP KEYS Based on TIP 38
Integrating Substance Abuse Treatment and Vocational
Services

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Ordering Information
          TIP 38
Integrating Substance Abuse Treatment
And Vocational Services



Easy Ways to Obtain Free Copies 
of All TIP Products

1. Call SAMHSA's National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and
Drug Information (NCADI) at 800-729-6686, 
TDD (hearing impaired) 800-487-4889.
2. Visit CSATs Website at www.csat.samhsa.gov



Do not reproduce or distribute this publication for a fee with
out specific, written authorization from the Office of
Communications, Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services.



DHHS Publication No. (SMA) 01-3609
Printed 2001