title: Chemical dependence treatment review guidelines.
abstract: During the last decade, there has been an explosive increase in the development of chemical dependence (CD) inpatient/freestanding units (Yahr: J Stud Alcohol 49:233-239, 1988) to the point that fully one third of all mental health admissions reviewed involve chemical dependence (L. Goldstein, personal communication; APA, Office of Quality Assurance, unpublished data). This dramatic increase has raised serious concerns among clinicians about the quality and appropriateness of treatment programs and among third-party payors about the cost of care. Five major categories should be considered when reviewing CD cases: (1) patient characteristics, including age, gender, severity of illness, course, past treatments, and impact of an intervention; (2) level of care, including outpatient, day treatment, freestanding units, hospital, and detoxification units; (3) match of services appropriate to patient's needs; (4) treatment program, including level of staff involvement, program elements, and planning for patient transition; and (5) peer review, including reviewing with a peer, being a patient advocate, and being a consultant. If these elements in these five categories are considered, a competent review is accomplished.
authors.affiliation: Office of Quality Assurance, American Psychiatric Association, Washington, DC 20005.
authors.forename: K L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Phillips
mesh_terms: D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006302:Health Services Research; D006801:Humans; D010344:Patient Advocacy; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D010380:Peer Review; D011613:Psychotherapy; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy