Evaluation of a Clinician Training on Referring Chemically Addicted Clients to Mutual Aid Groups

Abstract

An in-service training was provided to 19 clinicians employed by one chemical dependency treatment facility. The goal of the training was to help substance abuse clinicians gain knowledge of several options for mutual aid fellowships, and strategies for referring clients to fellowships that correspond to clients' values and preferences. After participating in the training, clinicians were more familiar with, more knowledgeable about, and more likely to refer to a range of self-help options for ameliorating substance abuse issues. From pre- to posttest, clinicians also increased their scores on six out of nine self-efficacy items related to their ability to refer clients to mutual aid groups.

KEYWORDS:

• Mutual aid
• self-help
• chemical dependence
• alcoholism
• in-service training

Notes

The author thanks Samaritan Village, a chemical dependency treatment facility in New York City, for their assistance in data collection. Development, provision, and analysis of the training were supported by Adelphi University, Garden City, NY. The author reports no other financial support or affiliations.

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