Drug rehabilitation is designed to help people recover from drug and alcohol addiction. The intensity and length of services for any treatment program can be tailored to each person’s needs since no single treatment type will be right for everyone.1 Addiction is a chronic condition, but with successful treatment and management, recovery is possible.2 Recovery can take time and may benefit from a spectrum of treatment supports. Recovery support often starts with a period of supervised detoxification, follows with some combination of continued outpatient and/or residential care, then continues with various aftercare efforts. There are several benefits to seeking rehabilitation for substance use disorders. Trained staff is available to help support patients during the recovery process, assisting with any co-occurring mental health issues and offering guidance on what steps to take and what tools to use to create and sustain a drug-free life. Finding the right drug and alcohol rehabilitation center is an important part of recovery. This article will explore various types of rehab, levels of addiction treatment, what to expect from treatment, and how to find the right addiction treatment program.
What Are the Different Levels of Addiction Treatment?
There are different levels of addiction treatment. When needed to manage withdrawal from substances such as opioids, alcohol, and sedating drugs such as benzodiazepines, treatment begins with medical detoxification.3 Since withdrawal management alone is not a substitute for more comprehensive rehabilitation, once a person has safely detoxed, they are encouraged to continue with additional treatment. Upon completion of treatment, an aftercare plan will be devised that includes relapse prevention tools and other means of post-treatment support. Determining the right treatment plan is an important part of recovering from addiction.1 One factor considered in addiction treatment is the level of care a person may require or benefit the most from. The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) has developed the most widely used and comprehensive set of criteria used by treatment professionals to place patients with addiction and co-occurring conditions in the right level of care.4,5 Based on patient assessment across these criteria, there may be several potentially appropriate levels of care at various stages of a person’s recovery journey, including:4,5
Various outpatient services, including intensive outpatient (IOP) and partial hospitalization (PHP).
Clinically managed residential services at varying levels of intensity.
Medically monitored or managed intensive inpatient services.
Addiction is a chronic but treatable medical condition.6 A person may be diagnosed with a substance use disorder (SUD) if they have met several criteria dictated by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), 5th Edition, used by clinicians to determine treatment. The full 11 criteria used to diagnose a substance use disorder are organized in groups that, when present, demonstrate:7
Impaired control over use of the substance.
Social impairment because of substance use.
Risky use of the substance.
Pharmacological phenomenon related to the substance (i.e., substance tolerance; substance withdrawal).
As evidenced by the several potential levels of care outlined by the ASAM, addiction treatment is viewed as a complex process that involves many methods of treatment and intervention.
