Unlike prevention programs, drug and alcohol intervention programs target those who are already at risk for drug-related problems: college students who have to deal with drinking on campus, young people from families with a history of drug addiction and parents who are trying to raise drug-free kids. Intervention programs might be a website or grassroots community initiative that sends peers to schools to distribute fact sheets.
Phoenix House
Phoenix House is a non-profit organization that provides substance abuse treatment and prevention services to high school and college age youth.
Facts On Tap is an online Phoenix House resource for drug and alcohol information geared to teens, young adults and parents. At "Alcohol and Student Life," college students can get statistics on student alcohol use, common misconceptions, tips for cutting down or quitting alcohol, tests that indicate if there is a problem, where to get help and more. Parents can also get information on helping young people to make a healthy transition between high school and college life. There are other links to get more information.
Transitions is a Phoenix House program developed for teens moving into adulthood and college life. At the Transitions website youths and parents can get information on young people who live sober lives, tips for how to manage time now that there are no rules or curfews, how to recognize limits and have fun without drugs or alcohol.
12 Step Programs
There's a 12-step program for individual substances such as cocaine, pharmaceuticals and crystal meth. All are based on the original 12-step plan from Alcoholics Anonymous. AA is a free program for people who have a desire to stop using drugs and alcohol. There are no dues or fees. You do not need to be addicted to drugs or alcohol to be a member of AA.
Alcoholics Anonymous and other groups such as Narcotics Anonymous, have meetings in every state and most countries around the world. NA alone has more than 44,000 meetings each year. In a survey of more than 1,800 alcoholics, Caron Drug and Alcohol Treatment Centers found that those who relapse are more likely to not be in a 12-step program compared to people who do not relapse.
The Department of Justice endorses 12-step programs. In 1993, the Washington D.C. Superior Court ran an experiment. Drug felons who were provided drug-intervention treatment had fewer arrests following treatment. They also reported a reduction in drug-related problems. In 2000, the DOJ published a paper indicating that 12-step programs not only saved money for states, but also significantly improved the lives of drug-related offenders.
Harm Reduction
Harm reduction is a research-based intervention for people at high risk for relapse. Synthetic opiate medications such as methadone and Suboxone for opiate users and Antabuse for alcohol dependent people, work by blocking the effects of the drug on the brain and reducing craving. The Office of National Drug Control Policy reports that individuals who are stabilized using harm-reduction techniques can engage in therapy, reduce high-risk behaviors and hold jobs. About 1 percent of opiate-addicted people, reports Intervention Services Inc, stop using drugs without a drug agonist. Sixty-percent of opiate addicts move on to using IV drugs three years into their addiction.
