Parents in substance abuse treatment: Implications for child welfare practice

Substance abuse treatment in parents of young children is an important element of child welfare services. This study compares the predictive factors of post-treatment drug use in organizational, service and individual characteristics between parents and non-parents, mothers and fathers. The analysis sample is derived from the National Treatment Improvement Evaluation Study (NTIES), a longitudinal study designed to evaluate the implementation and effectiveness of the specialty substance abuse service system. The results show that treatment duration and the frequency of counseling available in treatment facilities are the most predictive factors for parents when other factors are controlled. Further, treatment duration, onsite service availability, and frequency of counseling available are significant factors in predicting post-treatment drug use for fathers, but not for mothers. These findings have implications for improving substance abuse treatment services for parents in child welfare settings.