Alcohol Treatment Center

There is an advantage to including on-site medical care in a drug abuse treatment center. Physicians and nurses provide 24-hour hospital services to monitor and ensure a safe withdrawal from alcohol and other drugs. In addition, a medical staff specializing in addiction medicine can oversee the progress of each individual and make necessary adjustments to the treatment plan.

Medical credentials can also be important. For example, chemical dependency treatment centers that earn a JCAHO accreditation (Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations) meet national standards for providing quality medical care. Appropriate state licensing is also an important consideration.

Be sure to ask which medical costs are included in the price of treatment.

Drug abuse and alcoholism affects the entire family, not just the alcoholic/addict. Quite often family members do not realize how deeply they have been affected by chemical dependency. Family involvement is an important component of recovery.

Treatment centers vary in the degree and quality of family involvement opportunities. Some offer just a few lectures and others offer family therapy. Ask if there is any time devoted to family programs and if group therapy is included.

There are no quick fixes for the diseases of drug abuse and alcoholism. Recovery is an ongoing process. The skills one learns during intensive treatment must be integrated into everyday life and this takes time.

Some treatment programs will offer a follow-up program but only in one location which may make it difficult to use.

Treatment programs should include a quality, continuing care program that supports and monitors recovery.