addiction
Choosing an Addiction Treatment Centre
Choosing a drug or alcohol rehab center for yourself or for a loved one can be an overwhelming and difficult process.
Today, more than ever, consumers need to know what to look for in a rehab center. As you research treatment centers and speak with rehab providers, here are important questions to ask and topics to cover.
Accreditation, Licensing and Certifications
Silkworth Lodge was opened in 2002 by The Families in Recovery Trust which is a Jersey-registered charity and part of The Silkworth Charity Group.
Silkworth Charity Group is also the first charity in Jersey to achieve the Investors In People ( IIP) prestige Gold award. The accredited status represents the commitment and drive of their employees with continuous development, delivering the best practice to their clients. In order to secure the accreditation, evidence was gathered and assessed via employee interviews carried out by an IIP assessor according to the IIP framework
Rehab centers need to be certified in order to advertise their programs and services on Google and Facebook via a third-party provider called LegitScript. This certification ensures that, through a rigorous vetting process, only legitimate, quality treatment centers can advertise their services on these channels. It’s a process that provides a level of protection for the consumer.
It’s not always obvious which rehab centers are ethical or unethical, so be cautious when researching if you find a multitude of negative news stories about a facility.
Clinical Staff Credentials and Licences
Silkworth Charity Group employs a team of Professional Individuals who each hold professional qualifications in their area of expertise. There is a strong value placed on each member of our team as everyone plays an important part in the running of our organisation. The Investor In People Accreditation is a testament to this. We also employ the services of a Consultant General Practitioner and Psychiatrist. All of our staff access external supervision from a Qualified Supervisor who we fly in from the UK every month.
Credentials and licenses indicate whether the individuals who provide addiction rehab programming and services meet nationally recognised standards for professional practice. If clinical staff are not licensed or accredited, they may not have the training and experience needed to provide the most effective care.
Multidisciplinary Treatment Team
The highest quality inpatient substance abuse treatment programs involve a multidisciplinary care team in order to address all aspects of the disease—mind, body, and spirit. This means your rehab program should include a mix of professionals who work together to create an individualised treatment plan. All team members should be licensed to practice in their particular discipline. Be wary if one staff member wears many hats. A multidisciplinary treatment team typically consists of:
- Chemical dependency counsellor
- Medical doctor
- Nurse
- Psychiatrist
- Psychologist
- Nutritionist
- Wellness Specialist
Use of Evidence-based Practices
The most effective treatment programs rely on evidence-based practices that have been proven through science-based research.
Silkworth Lodge’s residential rehabilitation programme is abstinence-based and uses the 12-step programme of recovery. It is tailor-made to you and includes cognitive behaviour therapy, motivational enhancement, and relapse prevention through a personalised care plan, counseling in a safe, therapeutic environment, specific workshops, assignments, group therapies, fitness, and nutrition.
Treatment Sucess Rate / Outcomes
Too often, treatment outcomes are not measured by rehab providers—or they’re measured inconsistently. Even the definition of treatment “success” can be different among providers. Be wary of rehab facilities that claim to have “the cure” or 100% success rates. If rehab success rates are quoted, the data should be collected using research-based methods or published in peer-reviewed journals.
At Silkworth
- 74% of our patients completing treatment remained clean of drugs.
- 83% of our patients completing treatment remained abstinent from alcohol.
- 93% of residents said following treatment that their general health had improved.
Specialised Programmes
Quality treatment providers do not take a cookie-cutter approach to care. It’s important to find rehab programs where care is individualised and tailored, whether that means providing gender-specific programs, targeted treatment for teens, young adults, or other specific populations, or other types of specialised rehab. Many issues discussed during rehab can be difficult to have when in mixed groups.
At Silkworth we provide the following programmes:
- Primary Treatment
- Secondary Treatment
- Family Programme
- Children’s Programme
- Teen & Adolescent Programme
Rehab Programme Length
The length of time spent in treatment is best determined by your progress rather than a specified number of days. Some substance abuse programs give an estimated time frame, but if progress isn’t made during that period, the length of time in treatment could be extended. Look for programs that provide multiple levels of rehab so that, as progress is made, you can step into a less intense level of care.
Post-treatment Recovery Support
Addiction treatment typically involves a high level of clinical care and support. When primary treatment ends and you’re on your own, it’s important to have a support system in place to help prevent the risk of relapse. Quality treatment centers offer a variety of post-treatment options including continuing care groups and other resources and support.
Following treatment at Silkworth Lodge, you have the opportunity to move into our Secondary Residential Treatment facility to help support your transition from intense rehabilitation treatment, into normal living. It is an opportunity to ease yourself back into life with the support of staff and a structured environment so that you can begin to look for work, and permanent accommodation and receive continued peer support whilst doing so.
It is important to acknowledge that Secondary Treatment can be as important as Primary Treatment as it is the early days of recovery that can often be the most challenging. By choosing to continue your treatment in our Secondary facility, you are choosing to strengthen your recovery and ongoing sobriety.
Family Support
Chemical dependency is often referred to as a family disease because it’s a condition that affects the entire family. Families need to heal and recover from addiction, too, by learning to work through the chaos they’ve experienced, set healthy boundaries and build trust in relationships. Treatment patients tend to have better recovery rates when the whole family is educated about addiction and involved in the recovery process.
Our dedicated Family Programme at Silkworth helps addiction to be understood as an illness and enables living in the solution rather than existing with the problem. Where addiction is the problem, by becoming more aware of the beliefs and experiences that influence your own behaviour, you can begin to find new, healthier ways of managing, approaching and relating with yourself, your loved one, and other family members and friends.
What Else Should I Know?
Depending on your specific needs and situation, there is a multitude of additional questions to ask treatment providers when you are trying to select the right rehabilitation center for yourself or a loved one. Be sure to read reviews online and other sources of consumer feedback.
Conduct your own web search to find more information about specific rehab centers. Here is a list of questions to assist in your research:
- What type of accreditation or licensing does your facility have?
- What credentials or licenses does the clinical staff hold?
- Is treatment done by a multidisciplinary team?
- What is the patient-to-counselor ratio?
- Do you use evidence-based practices?
- How successful is your treatment program?
- Do you offer medical detox or other therapies?
- Do you offer treatment specific to teens, young adults, older adults, or other populations? (as it applies to your situation)
- How long does the program last?
- What kind of post-treatment support do you provide?
- Do you offer family support?
- How long have you been providing addiction treatment?
Addiction treatment marks the beginning of a new way of living. The insights you gain and the changes you make during rehab will become the foundation for your recovery throughout the challenges life brings. Keep this in mind as you choose a treatment center. It will help you determine a good fit and identify the best treatment approach to build a solid foundation for lifelong recovery.
Learn more about The Silkworth Charity Group, the efforts we’ve taken to become one of the top rehabilitation centers, and how we can help you reclaim your health and your life from chemical dependency by visiting our website: www.silkworthgroup.org
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