Medical care of individuals residing in substance abuse and recovery homes: an analysis of need and utilization

The current study examined medical care need and utilization patterns among a substance abusing and recovering population (n = 876), investigating factors such as employment and drug use categories (e.g., pharmaceutical use, cocaine use, heroin use, alcohol use). It was found that those who were unemployed needed and utilized greater medical care than those who were employed. Results indicated that heroin, cocaine, and/or alcohol use was not predictive of medical care need or utilization, whereas pharmaceutical drug use was predictive of medical care need and utilization. Trauma and risky use of substances were not significant predictors of medical care need or utilization whereas the suicide severity composite was significant. Potential implications for misuse of medical services (e.g., to obtain pharmaceutical drugs of use) and federal medical care expenditure allocation are discussed.     

Efficacy of psychiatric inpatient hospitalization for adolescents as measured by pre- and post-MMPI profiles

The efficacy of inpatient hospitalization on emotionally impaired adolescents was investigated using present and past MMPI data. The results indicated that there is a flattening of the profile toward normalcy from time of admission to discharge time. Further statistical analysis revealed that of the 9 clinical MMPI scales, the Depression scale showed greatest change toward improvement.Received Ph.D. from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Major interests are behavior therapy and adolescent psychology.