Blog: JMATE

I really wanted to attend the Homeboy Industries and teen substance abuse interventions panel at JMATE, but didn't make it to the session. So I missed learning about Homeboy Industries' Project STAR program that works with recently released juveniles with a history of the substance abuse. They offer in-house, trauma-informed treatment that is sensitive to the unique needs of formerly gang-involved youth. Mental health services are a central part of the program, as are job trainings and academic and life skills classes.
Started as an alternative to gang violence in Los Angeles, Homeboy Industries trains and hires at-risk, recently released and former gang involved young people with the goals of transforming troubled youth into productive members of their communities. They provide free counseling, education, tattoo removal, substance abuse and addiction assistance, job training and job placement services.
Fast Company has a terrific piece on Homeboy Industries, its founder (Father Gregory Boyle) and the key people in charge of running the nonprofit.
Father Gregory Boyle moved to East Los Angeles 26 years ago, and began walking and biking the neighborhood. He became friendly with the community and even visited gang members in the hospital. And one day, he realized that he could help residents escape the pervasive cycle of violence.

Half of all psychiatric disorders occur before the age of fifteen. Most childhood onset psychiatric disorders increase the risk of developing early onset substance use disorder. And substance use increases the risk of developing psychiatric disorders.
So, what can treatment providers do to improve the care of kids who are using substances and may have (or be developing) psychiatric disorders?
According to Dr. Paula Riggs (director, Division of Substance Dependence, University of Colorado's School of Medicine), treatment providers need to compile a detailed history of substance use disorders for the child and his/her family. The history should include:

• school risk factors (such as poor academic performance and substance use among the child’s friends);
• attention to any substance used more than five times;
• onset of substance use;
• the progression to current substance use; and
• frequency of use.

Dr. Riggs explained that this history is vital to understanding the cause of cause and risk of substance use and dependence. By gathering and analyzing this information, treatment providers will be able to provide a good diagnosis, which should drive treatment. “We shouldn’t be treating things unless we know what we are treating,” she said.

This afternoon we heard about an upcoming evaluation of six Reclaiming Futures juvenile drug courts. Bridget Ruiz, a technical expert on adolescents from JBS International, chaired the session and opened the panel presentation with a discussion of the history of juvenile drug courts and Reclaiming Futures and also outlined the important elements of each approach.
“Evidence shows that combining the two models has been effective in helping young people, “ said Ruiz, who formerly was an associate professor at the University of Arizona.
Erika Ostlie, a senior policy associate at Carnevale Associates, gave an overview of an upcoming evaluation supported by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) of six federally funded Reclaiming Futures sites.

This morning I attend a panel discussion on how organizations manage change. Chaired by Dan Merrigan, a professor at Boston University who manages the Reclaiming Futures leadership program, the session featured three presentations that addressed key communication and collaboration challenges.
Dr. Merrigan focused on the role of leadership in the initiative. “At Reclaiming Futures, we believe leadership is about setting direction, creating alignment, and maintaining commitment,” said Dr. Merrigan. “ According to Dr. Merrigan, the Reclaiming Futures leadership culture is a collective activity distributed across boundaries and it exists without formal authority. “Leadership is adaptive, strategic, and relational,” said Dr. Merrigan.
Dr. Merrigan stressed that it’s important to recognize that change always causes anxiety. “We urge people to distinguish between technical work (which requires mechanical fixes),” he said, “and adaptive work (which requires addressing change). To accomplish this, Reclaiming Futures helps local teams build teams across systems, cultures and organizations that identify their adaptive challenges.”

A number of our fellows and staff are tweeting live from the Joint Meeting on Adolescent Treatment Effectiveness (JMATE). If you're on Twitter, follow along and join in the conversation using #JMATE. And for those not on Twitter, follow along on the blog!
 

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