Addressing the Treatment Gap: Integrating Holistic Approaches into Traditional Addiction Therapies

Presenter

Colleen Dunn

Campus

UMass Amherst

Sponsor

Ellen Correa, Department of Civic Engagement & Service-Learning, UMass Amherst

Schedule

Session 5, 3:30 PM - 4:15 PM [Schedule by Time][Poster Grid for Time/Location]

Location

Poster Board C18, Poster Showcase Room (163), Row 2 (C11-C20) [Poster Location Map]

Abstract

There are a significant proportion of individuals battling with mental health disorders that are not receiving the treatment and care that they need. This general lack of access is a result of a combination of systemic injustices that plague our society, such as racism, classism, and ableism. In the context of substance use disorder, there is an ongoing race within treatment care facilities to keep pace with the increasing proportion of individuals that develop a use disorder and the individuals who are on the path to recovery and relapse. A focus on increasing the long-term effectiveness of recovery treatments and lowering the rate of relapse opens treatment potential for the future. An integration of experiential treatments in conjunction with traditional treatment models have the potential to decrease the rate of relapse by treating individuals as a whole, addressing any coexisting mental health disorders that often go unnoticed and hinder recovery, and provide a greater sense of wellbeing in the lives of people that will have to be consciously maintaining recovery for a lifetime (Adedoyin et al., 2014).  For my civic engagement project, I will be working with Compass Recovery Addiction Center to design a holistic program curriculum to integrate into their Intensive Outpatient Program. The program will consist of a series of activities and workshops that engage a more holistic view of recovery, related to art, mindfulness, and meditation. Offering a more experiential approach to the usual treatment may result in more effective treatment and thereby opening access to care for more individuals who fall into the treatment gap.

Keywords

civic engagement, treatment access, social inequity

Research Area

Mental Health

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