Rowan University partners with DMHAS to provide treatment services for people with substance abuse disorders

The Department of Family Medicine at the Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine has entered into a two-year $973,000 agreement with the New Jersey Department of Human Services Division of Mental Health Addiction Services (DMHAS) to provide early intervention and treatment services for individuals who have, or are at risk for, substance abuse disorders. The agreement adds five South Jersey sites to an ongoing five-year program at DMHAS made possible by a grant from the federal government's Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

The Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) program administered by SAMSHA provides the State with funds to establish a comprehensive, integrated, public health approach to the delivery of early screening, intervention and treatment services for at-risk persons.

Under the agreement with DMHAS, Rowan Family Medicine offices in Hammonton, Mt. Laurel, Sewell, Stratford, NJ, and the Student Wellness Office in Glassboro, NJ, will provide each adult patient with alcohol and drug screening and, as needed, on-site interventions or referrals.

"The initial screenings consist of between one and three questions concerning drug and alcohol use that, depending on a patient's response, could lead to a more in-depth screenings intervention by a trained health coordinator," said Dr. Joshua Coren, chairman of the medical school's Department of Family Medicine. "This agreement will help us provide on-site, early intervention services to at-risk patients before their substance abuse can result in serious consequences to them or to others."

The SBIRT program follows this three-step approach:

• Screening, which quickly assesses the severity of substance use and identifies the appropriate level of treatment;
• Brief intervention that consists of one to five sessions by a specially trained health educator and focuses on increasing insight and awareness regarding substance use and motivation toward behavioral change; and
• Referral to treatment for those identified as needing more extensive treatment with access to specialty care.

Patients who score at the highest risk for substance use issues can get referrals to a network of substance use treatment providers. For those patients, the health coordinators at the Rowan Family Medicine sites will place a call with the patient to a hotline that arranges for a direct referral to a licensed substance abuse treatment provider.