New Directory Aims to Keep Families Together During Recovery

Fam­i­lies impact­ed by sub­stance use and abuse now have a new resource to turn to for support.

With fund­ing from the Annie E. Casey Foun­da­tion, two non­prof­its — Wilder Research and Vol­un­teers of Amer­i­ca — have launched the Fam­i­ly-Based Res­i­den­tial Treat­ment Directory.

This dig­i­tal direc­to­ry iden­ti­fies more than 360 res­i­den­tial pro­grams that care for par­ents and chil­dren in the same facil­i­ty. These pro­grams offer a vari­ety of ser­vices, includ­ing treat­ment for sub­stance use dis­or­ders, ther­a­py, job readi­ness train­ing, life skills devel­op­ment and par­ent­ing education.

Despite their dif­fer­ences — and their dif­fer­ing ther­a­peu­tic approach­es — the pro­grams includ­ed in the direc­to­ry have the same end goal: to keep fam­i­lies togeth­er dur­ing recovery.

When moth­ers and chil­dren receive spe­cial­ized treat­ment togeth­er, ​“the mater­nal bond is main­tained, chil­dren thrive and moth­ers are moti­vat­ed to achieve long-term recov­ery,” accord­ing to research. Swap fathers into the pic­ture, and the out­comes are sim­i­lar­ly positive.

In addi­tion, three rec­og­nized ben­e­fits of the fam­i­ly-based res­i­den­tial treat­ment approach are:

• a reduc­tion in neona­tal inten­sive care days;
• a reduc­tion in the cost of drug over­dos­es; and
• the elim­i­na­tion of expens­es relat­ed to more chil­dren enter­ing the wel­fare system.

The direc­to­ry is a liv­ing doc­u­ment that cur­rent­ly rep­re­sents the work of near­ly 300 orga­ni­za­tions in 48 states plus Puer­to Rico and the Dis­trict of Colum­bia. Users can add to it via email.

Fam­i­ly First Act Boosts Funding

Under the Fam­i­ly First Pre­ven­tion Ser­vices Act, states can now receive fed­er­al Title IV‑E fos­ter care main­te­nance reim­burse­ments for chil­dren who are liv­ing with their par­ents in approved fam­i­ly-based res­i­den­tial treat­ment facil­i­ties — the same reim­burse­ment pro­vid­ed for chil­dren in tra­di­tion­al fos­ter placements.