The Recovery Care and Treatment Center: A Database Design and Development Case.

1. CASE INFORMATION 1.1 Case Background Established in 1979, the RCTC is an addiction treatment and recovery agency located in a Midwestern state in the USA. The mission of the organization is to help individuals recover from alcohol and drug addictions through effective treatment, quality education, and support from the community. The RCTC offers many programs to help individuals begin the "road to recovery" from education to an intensive outpatient service. By working with the community, the goal of the RCTC is to return the patient back to society as a productive and helpful individual. The RCTC has grown considerably over the years and currently treats approximately 800 patients per year. The primary services of the RCTC focus on substance abuse treatment (i.e., drugs and alcohol abuse), with special service programs for driving under the influence (DUI) offenders. In this state, an individual who is caught driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol can receive a sentence that includes one or more (usually more) of the following: jail time, punitive fines, suspended license, DUI probation, DUI schools, and other punishments. The RCTC primarily is involved with DUI probation cases where offenders are treated at the facility, attend a DUI school, and/or are required to complete community service hours. During a DUI probation period, the courts may order compulsory drug and alcohol treatment or may require attendance in a DUI School. Both of these measures are used for education and to deter offenders from committing another DUI crime in the future. During DUI probation, the completion of these types of programs can lead to a reduction in penalties for a DUI offense. With that being said, these DUI probation options are considered a privilege and are often not available for repeat offenders. Criminal DUI probation periods are different depending on the state law and circumstances involved in the DUI offense. In some states the DUI probation period can range from three months to a full year. In more serious DUI offense cases (e.g., if the blood alcohol content is higher, a DUI resulted in a death, DUI while having a suspended license from a previous DUI), the probation period can span several years after a DUI conviction. If a person commits any criminal offense during a DUI probation period, the punishment for that offense can be increased considerably. This violation of DUI probation can lead to jail time, fines, and/or an extension of the DUI probation. If DUI probation is part of an individual's DUI sentence, it is important for the offender to understand all of the terms and specifics of what that DUI probation entails. In the large majority of cases, the offender is designated a probation officer who will maintain correspondence with and ensure that the offender is in compliance with the DUI probation terms. Some of these DUI probation terms include motor vehicle restrictions, treatment and school requirements, and other DUI probation provisions. The RCTC receives a list of DUI offenders, who they prefer to call "clients," from references through one of the two court systems, adult or juvenile, of the local county. Individuals who are 18 years or younger will be flagged as juveniles, and it is worth noting that the penalties are more severe when offenders are juveniles as opposed to adults. Once referred by the court, a legal guardian of each juvenile offender must be notified. The guardian will be fully informed of the juvenile conditions and all service programs that the RCTC has to offer. Once clients sign an initial agreement, they will be assigned to a probation officer. The probation officer is responsible for designing and recommending a program that is appropriate for each individual client. Working together, the court and probation officer for each client decide on a series of community service activities (the "community service case") as part of the overall program, and the court reviews and ultimately has to approve the recommended programs for each client. …