health and counseling edition - the Youth Advocacy Division

FALL 2008
COMMUNITY NOTEBOOK: HEALTH AND COUNSELING EDITION
(Continued from page 11)
Most recently, OYYAS has created a new
level of state-funded care—the youth
detoxification and stabilization units. These units
provide youth in crisis with a safe, temporary,
protective environment in which they can receive
the assessment, care, supervision, and medical
monitoring necessary to facilitate stabilization of
their physical and emotional states. Once
stabilized, the adolescent can then receive a
comprehensive assessment of substance use, as
well as his or her social, emotional, behavioral,
and mental health status. With this information,
staff then refer the adolescent to the appropriate
treatment setting and other services. In addition,
staff also provide counseling, referral, and support
services to families, in an effort to help them
support their children’s recovery.
Another feature of the BSAS range of
programs is recovery high schools. Recovery high
schools were established in response to the high
rates of relapse among adolescents who returned
from a treatment experience to a traditional high
school. The three schools—located in Boston,
Beverly, and Springfield—are four-year, nontraditional
public high schools for youth who have
been diagnosed with a substance abuse or
dependence disorder. These schools have been
found to be a tremendous success in both
reducing rates of relapse and increasing rates of
graduation.
In spite of the lingering problem of alcohol
and substance abuse among our communities’
vulnerable youth, young adults are receiving
better services specifically designed for them. The
BSAS model is a system of care creating positive
change in the lives of youth and young adults, as
well as their families, affected by substance
abuse. For court-involved youth, substance abuse
treatment programs are increasingly cited as an
effective alternative to detention. Youth who are
not yet court-involved, but dependent upon drugs
or alcohol, are certainly in a high-risk situation.
OVER 70% OF YOUTH IN THE
JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM MEET
CRITERIA FOR AT LEAST ONE MENTAL
HEALTH DISORDER. AMONG THOSE
YOUTH WITH A MENTAL HEALTH
DIAGNOSIS 60.8% ALSO MET CRITERIA
FOR A SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER.
National Center for Mental
Health and Juvenile Justice, 2006
These children may also be feeling the effects of
increased tension at school, home, or with peers.
By accessing BSAS services, you can help guide
them toward breaking out of the cycle of alcohol
or substance abuse.
Information on all of the BSAS services,
including outpatient programs, assessments, and
the referral process, can be accessed by calling
the Massachusetts Substance Abuse Information
and Education Helpline at (800) 327-5050. ◊
Logan Walsh also contributed to this report.
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