USING THE DUAL DIAGNOSIS CAPABILITY OF ADDICTION TREATMENT (DDCAT) INDEX TO IMPROVE OUTCOMES: AN EVALUATION OF A COMMUNITY-BASED BEHAVIORAL HEALTH PROGRAM

Idada-Parker, Valerie

USING THE DUAL DIAGNOSIS CAPABILITY OF ADDICTION TREATMENT (DDCAT) INDEX TO IMPROVE OUTCOMES: AN EVALUATION OF A COMMUNITY-BASED BEHAVIORAL HEALTH PROGRAM Public Deposited

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March 19, 2019

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Idada-Parker, Valerie
- Affiliation: School of Nursing

Abstract

Agencies that provide services to individuals with coexisting mental health and substance abuse disorders (dual diagnosis) require guidance to understand their capability for comprehensively implementing integrated care to achieve optimal treatment outcomes. The Dual Diagnosis Capability of Addiction Treatment (DDCAT) index was created by researchers with funding from SAMHSA to address this need. The project was completed in a community-based outpatient behavioral center. It aimed to use the DDCAT index to evaluate a community-based agency that provides substance abuse and mental health services to determine its capability of providing integrated care to the clients who are dually-diagnosed. The project identified areas where the agency was well equipped to serve these clients, and determined where programmatic improvement was needed. Methods used for collecting data included observation, interviews and review of documents. The investigator found that clinical process: treatment and continuity of care were the DDCAT domains that required the most improvement for endorsement for dual diagnosis capability, while staff training and program structure was the lowest priority. Overall the staff acknowledged the usefulness of the evaluation. The staff was confident that they could follow the DDCAT index recommendations and improve their scores. The study concluded that the DDCAT index is a valuable tool to use to guide agencies to understand their capability for integrated care to achieve optimal treatment outcomes. Mental health and addiction treatment programs can enhance dual diagnosis capable services by implementing recommendations using the DDCAT index.

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