Drug Rehab Center

While health care privatization continues to be a topic of lively debate in Canada, private companies have been treating Canadians with drug and alcohol addiction since the mid-1980s with the opening of Bellwood in Toronto. If you are considering addiction treatment for yourself, a family member or an employee, it’s important to be clear on the real advantages of paying for drug treatment.

Top Reasons to Pay for Residential Addiction Treatment

1. prompt intake – private treatment centers typically have much shorter wait lists than public treatment centers. This is important since there is often a limited window of opportunity when an individual decides to get help for their addiction.
2. medical professionals on staff - since many private addiction programs follow the Minnesota Model of treatment they often have a multi-disciplinary team of professionals that includes nurses, doctors, and psychiatrists
3. on-site detoxification – many clients require alcohol or drug detox before they are ready to begin treatment. Private drug rehabs often provide both of these services under one roof so you don’t have to have ‘clean time” prior to admission. Government treatment typically provides detox and treatment at separate facilities and there can be wait lists for both.
4. higher-functioning peer group – while this can vary from group to group in any treatment setting, overall, peer groups in private addiction treatment are typically higher functioning. Private treatment centers do not get referrals from the criminal justice system for individuals being granted early parole in exchange for addiction treatment and, because of funding issues, rarely get calls from individuals who are on social assistance. Welfare recipients or parolees tend to have “clusters” of challenges that can include lack of housing, unemployment, a history of sexual or physical abuse, communicable diseases (Hep C, AIDS, HIV, TB, etc.), and basic hygiene. These basic living issues may not be relevant to individuals who can afford to pay for treatment.
5. therapeutic setting – many private treatment centers are located in rural settings that can enhance the treatment experience. Furthermore, private treatment centers often have better accommodations and amenities such as a fitness center, swimming pool, etc.
6. additional therapies –  many private alcohol and drug rehab centers understand the importance of a biopsychosocial approach to treatment that recognizes the role that mind, body, and spirit plays in long-term addiction recovery. As a result, private treatment centers often include adjunct therapies such as massage, yoga, and other mind-body treatments that can help clients learn stress reduction techniques.
7. longer treatment duration – in Canada, private treatment programs can to be 6 weeks, 8 weeks, or 90 days. Most public government treatment programs are 2 to 4 weeks (*).
8. more services for alumni – private treatment centers typically have  alumni programs because it’s a good source of ongoing referrals if the alumni stays clean and sober. With long wait lists already, government programs have a lower incentive to provide alumni support.
9. support for the family – another long-standing tradition in private addiction treatment is support for the family. Family and Couples Programs are often offered every few weeks at private facilities where families and spouses are provided with their own therapist and work in their own group. Rarely does government-funded programs offer this level of service for family members.

(*) Note: some government programs are longer but, typically, these programs are sober living programs that do not have trained addiction professionals or provide a minimum of group or individual therapy.

Mistaken Beliefs of Private Addiction Treatment

There are also, however, some misconceptions about private addiction treatment. The general public may be mistaken in some of their expectations of private treatment just because they are paying for services.

1. private treatment centers are all licensed – FALSE. Many private treatment centers elect not to get licensed with their regional health authority. They may have a business license but this is very different than being licensed to provide health care services. The reasons for not being licensed with the local health authority typically include onerous staffing requirements, required changes to the facility to meet building code requirements, improperly installed septic or water systems, etc.
2. private treatment centers have clinical staff with better qualifications – FALSE. Canada currently has no standards for counselling professionals. Anyone can call themselves a counsellor. Private treatment centers do not have a governing body that monitors addiction counsellors. So, bottom line, you’re rolling the dice unless a government agency or private treatment center is willing to post the qualifications of their staff. 
3. private treatment centers have better outcomes – FALSE. Nobody knows if private treatment centers have better outcomes because rarely do private or public addiction programs conduct outcome studies of their alumni. An exception to this is Betty Ford Center in California, Hazelden Foundation in Minnesota, and the government-funded AADAC in Alberta. For more information on this topic read Comparing Success Rates of Treatment Centers.

Conclusion

If you are considering private addiction treatment, it’s good to have a clear understanding of the advantages of paying for treatment while being clear on some of the misconceptions. Hopefully, this overview will provide a more realistic expectation of what private residential drug rehabilitation can and cannot provide.

Becoming an informed consumer is the best thing you can do to avoid being disappointed. To help you get started, Sunshine Coast Health Center recommends reading Drug Treatment Basics which includes links to additional articles such as getting value for your drug treatment dollar, 10 questions to ask an alcohol and drug treatment program, how to find the right alcohol and drug treatment center, etc.

Disclaimer

The delivery of residential addiction treatment services varies widely from program to program. Prospective purchasers of private addiction treatment are recommended to contact treatment centers directly for further information. The author and Sunshine Coast Health Center provide this information for educational purposes only and assumes no liability for its content.

About the Author

Daniel Jordan is the General Manager of Sunshine Coast Health Center and hopes that these postings will help  take away some of the mystery often associated with addiction and its treatment.

Tags: addiction treatment, advantages, Canada, fee-for-service, for-pay, private rehab, private treatment, public treatement

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 21st, 2008 at 3:37 pm and is filed under Addiction Treatment Help. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.