HEALTH CARE : DRUG ALCOHOL SUBSTANCE ABUSE: THERAPY TREATMENT REHABILITATION : CRIMINAL JUSTICE PRISON AND DETENTIONS HEALTH AND MEDICAL CARE: Drug Abusing Offenders Not Getting Treatment They Need in Criminal Justice System
David P. Dillard
.
HEALTH CARE :
DRUG ALCOHOL SUBSTANCE ABUSE: THERAPY TREATMENT REHABILITATION :
CRIMINAL JUSTICE PRISON AND DETENTIONS HEALTH AND
MEDICAL CARE:
Drug Abusing Offenders Not Getting Treatment They Need
in Criminal Justice System
Date: Tue, 13 Jan 2009 16:02:34 -0500
From: "NIH OLIB (NIH/OD)" <ol...@OD.NIH.GOV>
To: NIHP...@LIST.NIH.GOV
Subject: Drug Abusing Offenders Not Getting Treatment They Need
in Criminal Justice System
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH NIH News
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
<http://www.nida.nih.gov/>
Embargoed for Release: Tuesday, January 13, 2009, 4:00 p.m. EST
CONTACT:
Dorie Hightower
or
Stephanie Older
e-mail:
DRUG ABUSING OFFENDERS NOT GETTING TREATMENT THEY NEED
IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM
Treating Inmates Has Proven Public Health, Safety and Economic Benefits
The vast majority of prisoners who could benefit from drug abuse treatment
do not receive it, despite two decades of research that demonstrate its
effectiveness, according to researchers at the National Institute on Drug
Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health. In a report
published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association, NIDA
scientists note that about half of all prisoners (including some sentenced
to non-drug-related offenses) are dependent on drugs, yet less than 20
percent of inmates suffering from drug abuse or dependence receive formal
treatment.
"Treating drug abusing offenders improves public health and safety," said
NIDA Director and report co-author Dr. Nora D. Volkow. "In addition to
the devastating social consequences for individuals and their families,
drug abuse exacts serious health effects, including increased risk for
infectious diseases such as HIV and hepatitis C-and treatment for
addiction can help prevent their spread. Providing drug abusers with
treatment also makes it less likely that these abusers will return to the
criminal justice system."
The authors of the report suggest that the criminal justice system is in a
unique position to encourage drug abusers to enter and remain in
treatment, thereby disrupting the vicious cycle of drug use and crime. In
fact, most studies indicate that outcomes for those who are legally
pressured to enter treatment are as good as or better than outcomes for
those who entered treatment without legal pressure, the researchers noted.
"Addiction is a stigmatized disease that the criminal justice system often
fails to view as a medical condition; as a consequence, its treatment is
not as available as it is for other medical conditions," stated Dr.
Redonna K. Chandler, the report's principal author and chief of NIDA's
Services Research Branch.
There are several ways in which drug abuse treatment can be incorporated
into the criminal justice system. These include therapeutic alternatives
to incarceration, treatment merged with judicial oversight in drug courts,
treatments provided in prison and jail, and reentry programs to help
offenders transition from incarceration back into the community.
Some communities cite costs as the reason for not treating offenders;
however the report discusses the economic benefits of treating
drug-involved offenders. "A dollar spent on drug courts saves about $4 in
avoided costs of incarceration and health care; and prison-based treatment
saves between $2 to $6," Chandler said.
The report emphasizes that addiction is a chronic brain disease: that
repeated drug exposure in those who are vulnerable triggers brain changes
that result in the compulsive drug use and loss of control over drug
related behaviors that characterize addiction. "Viewing addiction as a
disease does not remove the responsibility of the individual," said
Volkow. "It highlights the responsibility of the addicted person to get
drug treatment and society's responsibility to make treatment available."
To learn more about the latest research on treatment for drug abusers in
the criminal justice system, download NIDA's Principles of Drug Abuse
Treatment for Criminal Justice Populations at
<http://www.drugabuse.gov/PODAT_CJ/principles>.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse is a component of the National
Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIDA
supports most of the world's research on the health aspects of drug abuse
and addiction. The Institute carries out a large variety of programs to
inform policy and improve practice. Fact sheets on the health effects of
drugs of abuse and information on NIDA research and other activities can
be found on the NIDA home page at <www.drugabuse.gov>. To order
publications in English or Spanish, call NIDA's new DrugPubs research
dissemination center at
1-877-NIDA-NIH
or
240-645-0228 (TDD) or fax
or
email requests to
or
e-mail:
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) -- The Nation's Medical Research
Agency -- includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is the primary federal
agency for conducting and supporting basic, clinical and translational
medical research, and it investigates the causes, treatments, and cures
for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its
programs, visit
##
This NIH News Release is available online at:
<http://www.nih.gov/news/health/jan2009/nida-13.htm>
Sincerely,
David Dillard
Temple University
(215) 204 - 4584
jw...@temple.edu
<http://daviddillard.businesscard2.com>
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