Resources for linkage of primary health care and substance abuse services

Abstract

Most practitioners would agree that substance abusing clients benefit from a comprehensive and coordinated approach to their medical and psychosocial problems. For practitioners in private practice, it is not always clear how to manage alcohol and drug cases in a way that achieves the level of intensity that is appropriate for each client and maintains continuity of care across settings and treatment providers. The purpose of this article is to suggest a range of strategies that have been used to enhance communication among practitioners and the agencies and organizations with whom they interact, both formally and informally. The article will describe strategies in the following four areas: (1) coordination of services, (2) interagency agreement, (3) community resources, and (4) public‐private cooperation. Some of the strategies apply directly to the practitioners' activities, while others are included to improve practitioners' understanding of how to deal more effectively with bureaucratic structures and processes as they encounter them.