Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment

The Journal of Adolescent Health recently published a study in its June issue titled, Mental Health Disorders and Long-term Opioid Use Among Adolescents and Young Adults With Chronic Pain. This study concluded that adolescences and young adults with preexisting mental health conditions are 2.4 times more likely to be prescribed opioids over extended periods of time for chronic pain. The most common documented chronic pain complaints included back pain, neck pain, headache and arthritis or joint pain.

Researchers from Seattle Children’s Research Institute and the University of Washington looked at 13 to 24 year-olds across the West, Midwest and Southwest United States to examine the association between long-term opioid use and mental health disorders. They found that older male youth who live in low-income communities with fewer residents who attended college, were even more likely to use opioids for extended periods.

A study recently published in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior found that adolescents who engage in teenage drinking not only perform poorer academically than their non-drinking peers, but also have much higher tendencies to feel like social outcasts. This is due to the social stress caused by underage drinking.
According to the American Sociological Association, researchers from the University of Texas at Austin and Michigan State University conducted their study, “Drinking, Socioemotional Functioning, and Academic Progress in Secondary School,” by closely examining the data collected from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). Add Health began in 1994 and is the largest comprehensive survey of health-related behavior among adolescents between grades 7 and 12.
In addition to the initial findings that underage drinking is linked to feelings of ostracism and poor academic performance, researchers concluded that these feelings of loneliness and social stress are greatly increased in school environments with student populations that tend to form close-knit cliques and do not abuse alcohol.

Juvenile Justice Reform

• High court ruling on juvenile life sentences means a chance at freedom (Orlando Sentenial)
  In more than two-dozen states, lawyers can now ask for new sentences. And judges will have discretion to look beyond the crime at other factors such as a prisoner's age at the time of the offense, the person's background and perhaps evidence that an inmate has changed while incarcerated.
• RExO Grants: Reduce Recidivism and Build Lives (Huffington Post)
  This month, the Department of Labor announced grants of nearly $50 million to 25 organizations under two different grant programs that serve juveniles under our Re-Integration of Ex-Offenders initiative.
• Juvenile Justice: A Move Away From Detention For Some (NorthEscambia.com)
  Florida law enforcement and criminal justice officials say the use of civil citations for troubled youth, rather than a lock-up, is slashing costs, and giving kids a better chance of a turn-around, and they want the practice to become more widespread.
• L.A. School Police, District Agree to Rethink Court Citations of Students (Juvenile Justice Information Exchange)
  In the wake of critical news reports, Los Angeles school police and administrators have agreed to rethink enforcement tactics that have led to thousands of court citations yearly for young students in low-income, mostly minority neighborhoods.
• Officials: Mentally ill children who don't get help can end up in criminal justice system (CrownPointCommunity.com)
  To child welfare advocates, the plights of families with mentally ill children demonstrate the state's failure to protect its most vulnerable children. Parents, judges, prosecutors, and other officials in Indiana say there is a multi-agency failure to provide mental health services to the children who need it most.
• Juvenile justice changes cutting costs (Herald Tribune Politics)
  Florida law enforcement and criminal justice officials say the use of civil citations for troubled youth, rather than a lock-up, is slashing costs, and giving kids a better chance of a turn-around, and they want the practice to become more widespread.

At 3 pm ET, Mitch Winehouse (father of late singer Amy Winehouse) is participating in a live Facebook Q&A chat on substance abuse and how it affected Amy's life. Hosted by the Partnership at Drugfree.org, Mitch will answer questions and discuss his new book, Amy, My Daughter, the inside story of Amy Winehouse's life and career.
Amy Winehouse was a five time Grammy-winning English singer and songwriter. She was the first British female to win five Grammys, including "Best New Artist," "Record of the Year" and "Song of the Year." She struggled with substance abuse and ultimately died of alcohol poisoning in 2011 at the age of 27. 
From the Partnership at Drugfree's announcement:

Juvenile Justice Reform

• $15 million complex 
to open in August, avoids jail-like setting (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)  The new facility is a reflection of a collaborative effort among police, schools and the court that has made Clayton a national model for keeping kids out of jail.
• Illinois lawmakers raise high school drop out age (wrex.com) Belvidere Superintendent Michael Houselog says he wants to see kids in schools, and that the district is working to accomplish that goal. Guilford High School rising senior Max James says students will pick school over breaking the law.
• At-risk youths achieve in San Angelo, Texas (gosanangelo.com)  A $154,000 grant was awarded to the Tom Green County Juvenile Justice Department earlier this year to address the needs of children ages 6 through 13. The goal was to identify problems in school or the household before students ended up on juvenile probation.

They were the recipients of the 2012 JMATE Evidence-Based Practice Program Award for demonstrating a consistent commitment and movement towards evidence-based practice in adolescent substance abuse treatment. What is Denver doing right? Turns out it's good old fashioned teamwork.
We recently spoke with Juvenile Court Presiding Judge Karen M. Ashby about what Denver is doing to break the cycle of drugs, alcohol and crime.  

Note: Review criteria for the JMATE reward included evidence of: (1) using evidence-based manuals, protocols, knowledge, and technologies, and using data to improve implementation, management, and fidelity; (2) a sustained commitment to evidence-based practices; and (3) a specific focus on adolescent treatment and recovery.

Juvenile Justice Reform

• Studying the gap between boys and girls inside the department of juvenile services (WYPR Public Radio) Maryland Morning Radio talks with Juvenile Justice Monitoring Unit head Nick Moroney about how things have –- or haven’t -– changed for girls in the juvenile justice system.
• Young people in trouble with the law receive diplomas a in Stockton, Calif. (Central Stockton News 10) “Rehabilitation is the primary objective of our juvenile justice program and a high school education is the foundation for building a successful life,” said Matthew Cate, Chaderjian Youth Correctional Facility Secretary.
• Juvenile justice increasing safety and saving money in Delaware (Delaware Online) Delaware has improved its juvenile justice system in recent years, helping more young people return to their families and learn to stay out of trouble, according to a report released June 12.
• Program fosters trust between youth and police (Post-Gazette) Pittsburgh encourages honest dialogue in meetings between police officers and teenagers in an effort to reduce the number of young people of color caught up in the system.
• Connecticut's Juvenile Review Board tries to keep young people out of court system (Middletown Press) Connecticut Juvenile Review Board members, drawn from local youth-oriented nonprofits and service agencies, are empowered to take cases of first-time offenders referred from juvenile court. As a test, the group is also taking students referred by a local middle school.
• Program works to keep kids out of juvenile justice and child welfare systems (PostCrescent.com) Leaders of a national project, sponsored by the MacArthur Foundation and Robert F. Kennedy Children’s Action Corps, selected Outagamie County, Wisconsin as one of four counties in the nation to receive aid and technical assistance to prevent children from entering both the juvenile justice and child welfare systems.

Juvenile Justice Reform
Teens turn corner with jury of their peers (News Star) The teen court program in Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, in operation since 1986, allows juveniles who have been found guilty of nonviolent misdemeanors to go in front of a group of their peers for a second chance.
Revised court rules protect juveniles (Post-Gazette) Revamped juvenile court procedures in Pennsylvania will prevent schools from taking additional disciplinary measures when a child gets in legal trouble outside of school.

Criminal justice podcast with David Onek (Berkeley Law) Probation Officer Scott MacDonald discusses reducing racial disparities in the juvenile justice system, partnering with the community, using data to drive decision-making, sustaining reforms through leadership transitions, and more.
Five questions for Wansley Walters, head of Florida’s Department of Juvenile Justice (FlaglerLive.com) In Miami-Dade, Walters spear-headed the use of civil citations and other diversion programs with generally applauded results. From 1998 to 2008, juvenile arrests dropped by 51 percent there, juvenile detention by 66 percent and re-arrests by 80 percent. It’s estimated that Miami-Dade saved more than $20 million as a result.

Larry Henry of Substance Abuse 411 talks with National Executive Director Susan Richardson about how Reclaiming Futures can help in your community.

In this podcast, Larry asks Susan Richardson about the Reclaiming Futures model and how it unites juvenile courts, probation, adolescent substance abuse treatment, and the community to reclaim youth.
Substance Abuse 411 was created because of Larry's personal family experience with substance abuse and the search for answers to so many unanswered questions.
Together, they discuss ways to improve drug and alcohol treatment and connect teens to positive activities and caring adults.
  
 

Juvenile Justice Reform

• Mentally ill children who don't get help can end up in criminal justice system (Northwest Indiana Times)  Parents, judges, prosecutors, and other officials in Indiana say there is a multi-agency failure to provide mental health services to the children who need it most.
  
• Are too many kids being sent to court for minor offenses? (Southern California Public Radio)  A growing wave of juvenile justice experts say school districts send too many students to court for minor offenses. Usually those kids are African American or Latino. A nonprofit’s effort to track school citations within Los Angeles Unified School District indicates that the district is following that pattern.
• Director of troubled youth agency to retire (Texas Tribune)  Cherie Townsend, the executive director of the Texas Juvenile Justice Department, announced Tuesday that she will retire at the end of June after nearly four years leading the state's institutions for youth offenders.
  

Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment

• New report: Health care costs drop if adolescent substance abusers use 12-step programs (University of Wisconsin-Madison) The use of 12-step programs, such as Alcoholics Anonymous, by adolescents with a history of drug and alcohol abuse not only reduces the risk of relapse but also leads to lower health care costs, according to research by the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
• Spotting depression in kids is essential (Albert Lea Tribune) There is a common misconception that many of the symptoms of depression, such as irritability and mood swings, are a normal part of adolescence. This is not the case and should be taken into account if there are other symptoms.
• A vaccination for depression (Chicago Tribune) Dr. Benjamin Van Voorhees, who is chief of general pediatrics at Children's Hospital University of Illinois, and his team identify kids at risk and then use a combination of traditional counseling and Internet-based learning to stave off mental disorders so they don't fall into substance abuse.

Jobs, Grants, Events and Webinars
Please share the Reclaiming Futures Opportunity Board with your colleagues in the juvenile justice, adolescent substance abuse and teen mental health areas. It's free to browse and post!