The Project, named The Community Alliance for CLAS, includes our partners: the Center for Applied Research Solutions, the Center for Cross-Cultural Competency, LGBT TriStar, and National Asian Pacific American Families Against Substance Abuse. 

ONTRACK is excited about this new opportunity to provide training and consulting expertise to California treatment providers and is already making preparation to launch first stage activities starting January 1, 2011.  Check our website often for more information and updates on the progress of the Community Alliance for CLAS project.

The Institute’s goals are to foster the growth of leaders who are able to advocate for, develop, and spear-head initiatives which provide for the needs of women with substance use disorders, their families and their communities. The six-month intensive program includes individualized leadership assessments, a 5-day immersion training, a leadership improvement plan with coaching and action learning, enhancement training, and upon graduation, access to WASLI’s network of leaders in women’s treatment. The Women’s Addiction Services Leadership Institute is an initiative of SAMHSA/CSAT developed and implemented by Advocates for Human Potential, Inc.

Ms. Rucker’s leadership training opportunity arrives well-timed and is complementary to ONTRACK’s current and ongoing capacity building activities (see “ONTRACK Receives Minority Led Organization Grant Award”).  Way to go, Ms. Madalynn!

by Kathryn Wosser Page, Ph.D.

Introduction

 The prevention field in general—prevention of juvenile delinquency, teen pregnancy, school dropout or alcohol and other drug use–is moving from a focus on the pathology and deficits of an “at-risk” person toward a focus on resiliency. One approach that holds great promise for creating the conditions for resiliency is found in the practices of restorative justice (RJ).  These practices reverse the disconnection and dangerous pleasure-seeking that characterize much of our culture today.

 It is only in recent generations, and mostly in the “civilized” world, that children and youth have been separated from their elders–separated from learning, helping, taking responsibility for keeping family and community afloat. The absence of the resulting bonds and sense of belonging, of a real-life supporting role in one’s community, leaves a giant hole in the heart–actually in the neurochemistry responsible for contentment and satisfaction.  The temporary warmth, comfort and euphoria of alcohol and other drugs mimic the effects of true connection with a combination of dopamine, oxytocin and other crucial neurochemicals.  Our youth gravitate instinctively toward recreating the sensation of interconnectedness that lives in our DNA–and where there is no true community, alcohol and other drug use become a compelling and temporarily effective substitute.   

 Although there is little literature directly connecting RJ with prevention of alcohol and other drug problems, circumstantial evidence for the preventive potential of these practices abounds. Risk factors diminish as a result of restorative practices, and protective factors increase.  Healthy and deeply satisfying connections grow out of these practices, healing generations of pain and strife.

 In Sonoma County a month ago, a circle was held to deal with two groups of Latino and Anglo boys who were fighting each other daily. After listening to parents’ frustrations, fears and sadness, the young Anglo group leader got up and went across the room to shake the hand of the Latino leader.  The rest of the boys spontaneously followed, shaking hands with their former opponents. The campus has been peaceful since then. (Amos Clifford, personal communication, March 3, 2010)

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Introduction

“The human, social, and economic costs of co-occurring substance abuse disorders and the continuum of mental disorders take a toll on the individual experiencing them, the family, the school, the workplace, the community, the State and, ultimately, the Nation as a whole.”  (US Dep. Health Human Serv., 2002, Foreward)

At the same time that adolescents are experiencing rapid physical, mental, social and emotional development, many are also unfortunately experiencing the emergence of mental health and substance abuse problems (Hawkins, 2009). Rates of co-occurring disorders among youth have been reported as equal to or higher than those among adults. One study found co-occurring disorders among almost half (42%) of the adolescent participants; compared with 35% of the adult sample (Rohde et al. 1991). The term co-occurring disorder refers to the presence of both a psychiatric and substance disorder. More and more, individuals with co-occurring disorders are being recognized as highly prevalent in both mental health and substance abuse treatment service systems (Chan et al., 2008; Minkoff, 2004). The Center for Substance Abuse Treatment found that 62% of male and 83% of female adolescents entering substance abuse treatment also had a psychiatric disorder (US Dep. Health Human Serv., 2002). Similarly, a review of the data from 77 substance abuse treatment studies found youth, as opposed to adults, to be the most vulnerable for co-occurring disorders; about 90% of adolescents under the age of 15 with substance dependence had experienced at least one mental health problem within the past year (Chan et al., 2008)

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While services under the Youth contract will end January 30, 2011, the Women’s TA Project will continue providing services, including regional training events, through April 30, 2011.  Check our website’s Training Calendar for information on these upcoming trainings.  TA and training for programs providing prevention-related services are still available under the Community Prevention Initiative. Contact Project Manager, Ifetayo Freeman at imfreeman@ontrackconsulting.org or (916) 285-1804 for information on qualification criteria under the CPI.  Also visit our site’s Projects page to learn about all of our projects.

ONTRACK is committed to its mission of empowering un-served and under-served communities to fight against the many issues related to substance abuse, and is seeking new and diverse funding strategies to continue this important work.

For more information on this news item, please contact our Program Services Manager, Peggy Thomas at pjthomas@ontrackconsulting.org or (916) 285-1810.

California has possibly the most diverse population in the country and this includes a very large and diverse, LGBTQ community.  This article will provide culturally appropriate service approaches and treatment strategies for working with lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgendered and questioning individuals in a treatment setting.  The article will include background on the population, an overview of terms and identities, and information on the socio-economic/justice and health disparities faced by LGBT individuals.  Specific emphasis will be given to African American, LGBTQ issues. Concrete strategies for modeling appropriate behavior in the service environment, and addressing transgender issues and homophobia in treatment settings/groups and housing environments will be provided, along with examples of LGBT-inclusive organizational policies and procedures.

Recently the show aired a segment on help for nonprofit community-based organizations, featuring our independent consultant, John Black.  John, who can boast of 20 years in his profession, has been part of our consultant pool since 2007.

The interview includes inquiries about vision mapping, nonprofits and taxes, and organization start-up.  Find out how John fields these questions from hosts Melissa Crowley and Guy Farris.  Click here to watch the video.

Click here to read more news and announcements.

There are always a few clients in treatment who really do push our buttons. These are the ones who talk the talk—often a great deal–but fail to walk the walk. They don’t follow the rules and when you give them consequences they are surprised, hurt, angry or all three. They make promises and break them, over and over.  Other people’s private property does not exist: “what’s yours is mine and what’s mine is mine”.  They have meltdowns over little things that others do, but don’t seem to notice that their own behavior is upsetting to others.  And despite clinicians’ best efforts this pattern continues with little or no improvement.

In the field of substance abuse treatment, we see this client as having some combination of character defects, maybe even the core dishonesty described in the Big Book as the basic obstacle to recovery.  What is almost never considered is the possibility that undiagnosed brain damage could be causing this behavior, and greatly interfering with treatment. Unbeknownst to many treatment providers, by far the most common type of brain damage is caused by exposure to alcohol during pregnancy resulting in the condition we now call Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD).

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