Category Archives: Addiction Treatment Statistics

Consumer Reports to Publish a Treatment Center Guide?

I heard a rumor that Consumer Reports will be publishing a treatment center guide. This could get interesting pretty fast. The government, Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) already publishes a comprehensive directory or a treatment center locator.

There are a few other treatment center directories that provide some good information on the treatment centers however both with SAMHSA and the Treatment Directories really don’t carry the same authority as does Consumer Reports. That said, I’m surprised that HealthGrades or some other authority in the space like Psychology Today has not ventured into our field to start ranking centers.

Knowing what I know I would much rather see what the consumers are saying on something like a Google Places Page like this one. I do not think Consumer Reports has much experience in the addiction field if any.

Treatment of Substance Abuse – a different approach

Why does it seem when the USA declares “War on This……or War on That…..whatever this or that is always seems to grow out of control….take for instance illegal drugs. It seems we have been fighting this war for decades now and it seems like it keeps growing and destroying lives. Wouldn’t it be great if we could all agree that this is not working and that there might be a better approach to get results? One such country is doing that and it is Portugal. Less drug usage, less crime etc. So if it is working over there why wouldn’t we try it over here in the USA?

I have my opinions on it but I’d much rather hear your opinions on how to get this scourge under control. At the same time we have the prescription drug industry running a muck and I wonder if that is a coincidence or by design? There is an interesting article by the Cato Institute that I share below in the video.

I’m on the receiving end of the phone calls helping treatment centers market to addicts and helping addicts find the right fit for themselves with their addiction. There is really nothing more painful than a parent who calls seeking help for their son or daughter and we’ve had a few who have 2 kids on IV drugs who need treatment simultaneously. This destruction of families seems needless to me if there are others who seem to be making progress towards a better result with treating addiction by legalizing drugs.

Addiction Treatment Industry Growth Rate

According the the Bureau of Labor and Statistics they are projecting a 21% growth rate over the next 10 years 2008 – 2018 for the hiring of new substance abuse counselors for drug addiction, alcohol addiction, gambling addiction as well as eating disorders. Only mental health counselors eclipses this growth rate over the same 10 year span at 24%.

While many other industries are contracting and exporting jobs overseas this is an industry that appears to headed towards double digit growth for the long haul for better or worse. The good news is that there will be many more substance abuse counselors to help people with addiction, the bad news is that there is still an increased demand for addiction counselors. The other piece of bad news is that it appears that demand will outstrip supply for people who want help kicking their addictions.