This 3-year study will examine Mental Health Systems, Inc. (MHS) Readiness and Capacity for Practice Improvement as it incorporates women-focused treatment into four MHS program sites currently serving female drug court participants. The proposed study will further include an experimental component to determine the relative effectiveness of a women-focused (WF) treatment program based on relational theory compared to the standard mixed-gender (MG) outpatient treatment program delivered to women offenders deferred from incarceration through drug court. The WF curriculum has been fully developed (Helping Women Recover, Covington, 1999; 2003); however, the activities outlined in this application will be the first empirical test of the curriculum that includes assessments of staff readiness and barriers to enhancing service. Specifically, 150 women participating in four MHS drug court programs in San Diego, California will be randomly assigned to the WF or MG treatment program groups. The proposed study has the following specific aims: 1. To identify and address barriers to coordinating and integrating new and appropriate WF services for substance dependent women offenders; 2. To coordinate and integrate a theoretically based women-focused protocol into the existing MHS program curriculum; 3. To develop effective fidelity measures to assess staff performance, adherence, and retention of the newly integrated curriculum; 4. To pilot test the efficacy of the theoretically based, multi-faceted, WF curriculum to promote positive behaviors among women offenders compared to the impact of the standard MG program; 5. To qualitatively assess women's perceptions of their treatment experience between those in the newly integrated WF program vs. those in the standard MG program. ? ? ?
| Messina, Nena; Calhoun, Stacy; Braithwaite, Jeremy (2014) Trauma-informed treatment decreases posttraumatic stress disorder among women offenders. J Trauma Dissociation 15:6-23 |
| Messina, Nena; Calhoun, Stacy; Warda, Umme (2012) GENDER-RESPONSIVE DRUG COURT TREATMENT: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Crim Justice Behav 39:1539-1558 |
