An Evaluation of the Effect of a Clinic Treatment Program on the Rehabilitation of Alcoholic Patients

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Abstract
A follow-up study of 200 patients who had attended the Vancouver clinic of the Alcoholism Foundation of British Columbia was done to evaluate the effect of the treatment program. Treatment consisted of individual counseling, group sessions and medical care for all, and residential care, psychiatric assessment and psychometric testing for selected cases. Of the 200, 100 (the experimental group) had an average of 16 treatment sessions, while the other 100 (the untreated control group) had an average of 2.5 sessions. Interviews were eventually conducted with 155 of the 200 subjects. The interview was conducted approximately between 10 and 46 months after the patient''s first contact with the clinic. The 2 groups were similar in age, sex (all men), marital status, occupation, employment status, education, religion, and time elapsed since intake interview. The experimental group were judged better motivated and acknowledged more serious drinking problems, and they had more contact with Alcoholics Anonymous following attendance at the clinic. Of the 155, approximately 50% showed some overall improvement in their behavior: 60% of the experimental group and 42% of the control group. It was found that 7% of the higher rate of rehabilitation among the experimental group was due to their greater motivation and more contact with Alcoholics Anonymous; thus, the effect of treatment was to increase rates of rehabilitation by between 10 and 15%. Improvement was rated on a number of indices: Drinking behavior: on the patient''s estimation, 72% of the experimental and 61% of the control group showed improvement, and on the interviewer''s assessment, 58% and 39%, respectively. Abstinence was not a good indicator of change in drinking behavior; no marked differences in abstinence were found between the 2 groups, and a surprisingly large number seemed to have managed to control their drinking while not completely abstaining. Health: on the patient''s estimation, 57% of the experimental group and 31% of the control group showed improvement. Work: 8% more of the experimental than the control group showed improvement in the work situation. Family relationships: 11% more of the experimental than the control group showed improvement. Social functioning: small differences in financial responsibility and leisure-time activities were found, with 6% and 8% more of the experimental group improved. Insight: 48% of the experimental group and 24% of the control group showed increased understanding of their alcohol, problems. Among those who attended Alcoholics Anonymous meetings regularly, additional treatment received from the clinic did not increase the chances of rehabilitation. Among those who did not have regular contact with Alcoholics Anonymous, treatment had the effect of increasing rehabilitation by about 20%.

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