A comprehensive, medically based drug rehab of quality uses:

Best practices

Certified addiction physicians and other medical professionals

Therapists with advanced degrees

A multi-disciplinary team approach

A variety of therapeutic modalities

12-Step program principles

All of these components can provide a newly recovering addict with the best opportunity to build a strong foundation for living life clean and sober. A quality drug rehab seeks to provide the patient with the best care possible.

There are several different types of detox programs.

Outpatient detox: A patient goes to a clinic and self-reports on progress through detox, progress in treatment, and on drugs taken. The clinic may dispense medication to be taken at home relying again upon self-reporting as to the efficacy of the drugs.

Hospital detox unit: A hospital may have a specific unit in which people will come to detox.

Detox facility: A separate facility which houses only detox units. These facilities are usually medically based and staffed but offer no addiction treatment.

Detox unit within a drug or alcohol rehab facility: A quality comprehensive rehab center should have a separate medically monitored detox unit on the premises that operates as the first phase of the drug or alcohol rehab facility’s substance abuse treatment program. Whether from alcohol detox or drug detox, the alcohol or drug rehab center provides the addict with a seamless transition from detox to addiction treatment.

An addict entering a drug or alcohol rehab program should receive an individualized treatment plan created for the particular patient. The patient’s needs for treatment must be based upon the individual’s health condition, substances used, mental health disorders, emotional and psychiatric health, and a host of psychosocial issues. Not all alcohol and drug rehabilitation centers offer individualized treatment plans despite evidence that it is considered to be a best practice.

When someone enters a quality drug or alcohol rehab program, he or she should receive a variety of different therapeutic modalities in addiction treatment to help him or her learn about self-destructive behaviors and coping skills.

In individual therapy, the patient works one-on-one with a therapist trained in addiction and mental health issues.

Group therapy is also a vital aspect of treatment. It involves a carefully comprised group of addicts who meet together with a trained therapist to work through personal issues. The group dynamic can be empowering as one learns that his or her issues are not unique while simultaneously receiving support and challenges from peers.

A quality Christian treatment program will combine best practices and medically based treatment modalities of addiction treatment with clinicians who are Christian. The addiction education component of Christian addiction treatment should specially include treatment workbooks that incorporate Christian principles and use a recovery bible as part of the treatment protocol. However, addiction treatment that relies only upon religious works without addressing the mental health issues and the physical realities created by drugs and alcohol cannot provide a Christian patient with the tools needed to live a clean, sober and healthy life. Addiction is a disease of the mind, body and spirit that requires a broad, medically based approach to recovery as well as a healthy spiritual base.

There are many distractions or feelings of obligation to family or friends that can stop a patient from staying in treatment. If a patient goes out of state for treatment, communication between the patient, family and friends is limited and the possibility of leaving treatment to go home is less likely. Treatment takes effort, focus, and emotional space. Missing one’s children, for example, can cause a person who is close to home to leave rehab before treatment is completed. It is best to put distance between oneself and everything else to build a strong foundation for long-term recovery.

Not all rehab facilities provide family members with therapy. Since the 1960s, scientific studies have demonstrated that addiction is a family disease. To change the environment at an addict’s home, everyone in the home must be treated for addiction. Issues of personal responsibility, consequences and codependent behaviors need to be addressed and tools need to be provided so that the family dynamic can move from dysfunctional to healthy.

Quality holistic addiction treatment programs are based upon the concept that the whole person must be treated. While many of these programs employ natural remedies such as yoga, massage, meditation and natural diets, quality holistic addiction treatment will also provide the patient with formalized addiction treatment protocols and, when needed, medical assistance.

Treatment can be effective even if an addict enters treatment through the threat of jail, the loss of a job or the loss of family. Once in treatment, the addict must be open to learning, listening and being honest. What happens during treatment is not dependent upon how one gets into treatment.

Laundry facilities are on site necessitating only a small amount of clothes. There is limited space and little storage available so a few loose fitting pants, shirts, and shorts, enough clothes for 7 days are all that is needed. Pajamas and personal hygiene items such as a toothbrush and a shaver are also needed. Short shorts, tank tops, shirts cut at the mid section and other provocative clothes are not allowed, nor are clothes with pictures of drug paraphernalia, drug expressions, or inappropriate language (sexist, racists for example). Specific treatment programs will have a list of items that are allowed and disallowed.