Detection, Advice, and Referral to Services (DARTS) Procedures Among Clients With Public Defenders

Abstract

Although screening and brief intervention techniques have been found to be efficacious in a variety of medical settings, their use in the criminal justice system has been limited. We present data from Chief Public Defenders (PDs) in 24 Pennsylvania counties who were surveyed about their approach to substance-using clients and their attitudes toward treatment and talking to clients about substance use. A random subsample (n = 8) participated in an additional semistructured interview. Results provide preliminary support for the use of Detection, Advice, and Referral to Services (DARTS) procedures by PDs and identify potential barriers to its implementation.

RÉSUMÉ

Procédures de Repérage, Conseils et Orientation vers les Services (DARTS) Pour les Clients des Avocats Commis d'Office

Bien que le repérage et les techniques d'intervention brève ont été montrés comme efficaces dans plusieurs types de structures médicales, leur utilisation dans le système judiciaire pénal est limitée. Nous présentons les données recueillies auprès de Chef des Avocats Commis d'Office de 24 comtés de Pennsylvanie interrogés sur leur approche des clients usagers problématiques de substances et leurs attitudes envers la prise en charge et leur facilité à parler des problèmes de substances avec leurs clients. Un sous-échantillon aléatoire (n = 8) a participé à un entretien semi-structuré complémentaire. Les résultats fournissent des éléments préliminaires pour l'intérêt de l'utilisation des procédures de repérage, conseils et orientation vers les services (DARTS) par les Avocats Commis d'Office et permettent d'identifier les obstacles potentiels à leurs mises en œuvre.

RESUMEN

Detección, Asesoramiento, y Gestiones de Derivación a Los Servicios (DARTS) entre los Clientes con los Defensores de Oficios Públicos

Aunque las técnicas de revisión e intervención breve han probado eficaz por una variedad de contextos médicos, su uso en el sistema justicia criminal ha sido limitado. Exponemos los datos del Jefe de Defensores de Oficios Públicos (PDs) en 24 condados de Pensilvania que fueron encuestados sobre sus enfoques a clientes que abusan las sustancias y sus actitudes hacia tratamiento y hablan con los clientes sobre abuso de sustancias. Una submuestra aleatoria (n = 8) participaron en otra entrevista semiestructurada. Los resultados proveen apoyo preliminar para el uso en los procedimientos de Detección, Asesoramiento, y Gestiones de Derivación a los Servicios (DARTS) por los Defensores de Oficios Públicos, e identifican obstáculos potenciales en su implementación.

Keywords :

• screening
• brief intervention
• substance abuse treatment
• criminal justice
• public defenders

THE AUTHORS

Amy A. Mericle, Ph.D., is a Research Scientist at the Treatment Research Institute. She was the Principal Investigator on the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation funded project entitled DARTS among clients needing legal assistance (grant no. 64727). Dr. Mericle completed her doctoral studies in the School of Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago and completed her postdoctoral work in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Mericle is a health services researcher. Her work focuses primarily on highlighting unmet need for services among vulnerable populations (high-risk youth, criminal justice clients, individuals with substance use and cooccurring mental disorders, and persons in recovery from substance abuse), identifying deficits in the service delivery system to address their needs, and developing and evaluating innovative approaches to meet their needs.

Steven Belenko, Ph.D., is a Professor in the Temple University Department of Criminal Justice. He is also affiliated with the Treatment Research Institute and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine as an Adjunct Professor of Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry, and is the Director of the Methods Core for the Center for Behavioral Health Services and Criminal Justice Research at Rutgers University. Dr. Belenko's research interests include the impact of substance abuse on the adult and juvenile justice systems, HIV risk behaviors and related service needs for offenders, and the integration of treatment and other services in drug courts, diversion programs, community corrections, and prisons. His current research has focused on improving implementation of evidence-based drug treatment in criminal justice settings; developing and testing organizational change and process improvement strategies to improve the implementation of treatment and other health services for inmates; development and testing of brief interventions for delinquents at risk for substance abuse; modeling economic costs and benefits of prison treatment, screening and admission processes in drug courts and mental health courts; computerized therapeutic interventions for drug-involved inmates; and improving use of evidence-based practices in juvenile drug courts.

David S. Festinger, Ph.D., is the Director of TRI's Section on Law and Ethics Research and an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Dr. Festinger holds a Ph.D. in clinical psychology, Masters degrees in both counseling and clinical health psychology, and is a licensed clinical psychologist. He is a fellow in the American Psychological Association's Division of Psychopharmacology. Dr. Festinger's research has focused primarily on bringing experimental research methods to bear on major ethical questions facing research participants in substance abuse research, empirically isolating the active mechanisms of drug courts, and developing empirically based dispositional procedures for substance abusing offenders. Dr. Festinger has served as the Principal Investigator and Co-Principal Investigator on numerous grants from the NIDA and has authored numerous articles and chapters.