Co-hosted the COSSUP national forum with COSSUP TTA providers. RSAT TTA staff planned and held the following sessions:
RSAT TTA Meeting for SAA’s and Subawardees - This session will serve as the annual meeting for residential substance abuse treatment (RSAT) grant administrators from State Administrative Agencies (SAAs) as well as RSAT program leadership from subawardees. Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) advisors will share information regarding RSAT funding and administration, and the RSAT-Training and Technical Assistance (TTA) team will provide updates about TTA services and opportunities, including fidelity assessments. Fidelity assessments were initiated by BJA and RSAT-TTA to assess prison and jail substance use disorder (SUD) programs’ adherence to nationally recognized promising and evidence-based practices. The presenters will analyze the lowest and highest aggregate scores and reveal the most common challenges and greatest strengths found in 88 prison and jail SUD program assessments completed in 41 states. This session is intended for an RSAT-only audience.
Modified Therapeutic Communities: Updating the TC Model with Evidence-Based Practices - The therapeutic community model has been utilized throughout substance use treatment programs across the United States for decades. As new evidence-based research becomes available and we better understand the importance of integrated care for substance use and co-occurring mental health disorders, the therapeutic community model has been updated to reflect contemporary standards of care. The more confrontational methods used in the past have given way to more collaborative, instructional, and relational as trauma has been identified as so prevalent among incarcerated participants. This session will give an overview of the RSAT modified therapeutic community model in corrections, common modifications to better implement evidence-based care, and an example of how a prison Modified Therapeutic Community operates. Robyn Feese from the Nevada Department of Corrections will discuss how they have incorporated MTCs into their prison substance use disorder treatment program for women.
Effective Partnership of Treatment and Security in Correctional SUD Programming - The partnership between security, treatment and support staff is one of the most influential factors in ensuring the effectiveness of correctional SUD treatment programs. This collaboration is essential to the functioning of structured, consistent, and successful program operations. Correctional officers are required to adopt additional roles and be trained in additional skills when serving within treatment programs to reinforce the treatment program mission and goals. Treatment and support staff need to include correctional staff observations at multi-disciplinary meetings, and in other decisions regarding participant progress and program completion. The SUD program is supported, and participants are provided with valuable role models when all staff engage in open communication and meaningful collaboration. Frank Craig, State Director for Gateway Foundation in Wyoming Corrections will join us to discuss the partnership between security, treatment staff, and Gateway peer specialists within the WY DOC.
Myths about MAT, True or False? - Most MAT related research focuses on persons with OUD but who differ significantly from those incarcerated with OUD. This workshop will summarize contemporary research on MAT specifically addressing common myths about MAT for incarcerated persons with opioid use disorder. The presenters will discuss what the correctional MAT research reveals about medication just replacing one drug with another. Or, on the other hand, that once on medication, behavioral treatment and support are not necessary for recovery. Or how naltrexone, while blocking opioid receptors in the brain, also blocks an individual’s ability to experience happiness or joy. Or how one opioid medication is superior to another. While existing research cannot answer every question, it can refute some common, but false assumptions and beliefs about MAT.
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