A reinforcement-based therapeutic workplace for the treatment of drug abuse: three-year abstinence outcomes.
Long-term Therapeutic Workplace effects were evaluated in heroin- and cocaine-dependent, unemployed, treatment-resistant young mothers. Participants were paid to work or to train in the Therapeutic Workplace but had to provide drug-free urine samples to gain daily access. Participants (N = 40) were randomly assigned to a Therapeutic Workplace or usual care control group. Therapeutic Workplace participants could work for 3 years. Relative to controls, Therapeutic Workplace participants increased cocaine (28% vs. 54% negative; p = .04) and opiate (37% vs. 60% negative; p = .05) abstinence on the basis of monthly urine samples collected until 3 years after intake. The Therapeutic Workplace can be an effective long-term treatment of cocaine and heroin addiction in poor and chronically unemployed young mothers.
Silverman
Kenneth
K
Center for Learning and Health, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland 21224, USA. ksilverm@jhmi.edu
Svikis
Dace
D
Wong
Conrad J
CJ
Hampton
Jacqueline
J
Stitzer
Maxine L
ML
Bigelow
George E
GE
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001519:Behavior; D019970:Cocaine-Related Disorders / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation; D004526:Efficiency; D004651:Employment; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D009293:Opioid-Related Disorders / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D018579:Patient Selection; D012054:Reinforcement, Psychology; D015813:Substance Abuse Detection; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation* / Q000652:urine; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D017132:Workplace / Q000523:psychology*