On January 19th of this year our latest manuscript was published in Social Behavior Research and Practice. Examining Sustained Recovery from Substance Use Disorder — A Delicate Process discusses the various aspects and definitional terms involved in achieving sustained abstinence (Long-term recovery). This article was submitted as the first in a series of manuscripts examining the recovery process; both from the perspective of the recovering individual, but also including persons within that individual’s personal and professional circles. Our goal is to achieve a holistic understanding of recovery as experienced and understood by recovering individuals, but in addition, to achieve a better understanding of what that recovery experience looks like from the perspective of those with direct access to the individual’s recovery sphere. We are actively seeking collaborations with substance use programs, outpatient clinics, halfway houses, and other venues where individuals undergoing their personal recovery experience may be residing or whose service they may be utilizing. We firmly believe in the adage that there can be “Nothing about us without us,” (Jürgens R., 2008). Please help us accomplish what promises to be an exciting and fruitful undertaking as we seek to quell the ongoing ravages of addiction in its many forms.
Category: Research Update
Research Update: New Publication in Women’s Health
The SASSI Institute recently published an article in Women’s Health on early intervention and resources for expectant mothers with substance use problems and service shortages in the present age. Within it, we discuss the need for more research and collaboration in regards to substance use disorder and criminal Justice, especially to assist women avoid the stigmatization and ostracizing they may experience; many simply by virtue of having experienced the disease of addiction. When combined with the criminalization of drug use, society inevitably finds itself entrapping these women in a revolving door fed by the “drug-crime” connection, but now also including newborns. Babies should NOT be born in prison, especially sick babies; however, when they are, quality prenatal care, early intervention, and community support upon release from prison are imperative to help those babies and their mothers have positive long-term outcomes. Please consider this a call to action, we welcome your interest in collaborative efforts.
Recent Article Investigating Denial Among Mandated Adolescents
The SASSI Institute is proud to announce our newest manuscript addressing adolescent substance
abuse. The title of this article is Mandated Treatment for Troubled Adolescents and Substance Use Disorder: Identifying and Breaking Through Defensiveness and Denial. It provides an investigation of the defensiveness demonstrated by teens who are mandated to participate in treatment as compared to their non-mandated peers. Part of the data set we collected for The Substance Abuse Subtle Screening Inventory (SASSI) Institute’s third iteration of the Adolescent SASSI-A3, the present study focused on data from 164 mandated teens that participated in the principal study. As in the principal study, these cases were drawn from substance use treatment, criminal justice programs, community corrections, and private clinical practices, among other venues, and all cases were provided by clinicians working within these service settings throughout all U.S. Census Regions.
In addition, we review cases demonstrating high-levels of defensiveness and denial in these mandated teen clients, and ethical ways to break through that barrier towards effective treatment engagement. Finally, we present two brief de-identified treatment case studies, aptly demonstrating defensiveness and denial from a clinical standpoint. We at The SASSI Institute are very proud of this work, and I want to personally thank my co-authors for making this work possible. The article is available free of charge as it was submitted as an open-access article distributed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), which allows readers to copy, redistribute, remix, transform, and reproduce in any medium or format, as long as the original authors are properly cited. You can read this article, as well as other articles related to the SASSI, on our References page.
This article also apears in the Indiana Criminal Justice Association’s, The Comment, Spring Edition.
Recent Article Investigating Denial Among Adolescents
The SASSI Institute is proud to announce our newest manuscript addressing adolescent substance abuse. The title of this article is Mandated Treatment for Troubled Adolescents and Substance Use Disorder: Identifying and Breaking Through Defensiveness and Denial. It provides an investigation of the defensiveness demonstrated by teens who are mandated to participate in treatment as compared to their non-mandated peers. Part of the data set we collected for The Substance Abuse Subtle Screening Inventory (SASSI) Institute’s third iteration of the Adolescent SASSI-A3, the present study focused on data from 164 mandated teens that participated in the principal study. As in the principal study, these cases were drawn from substance use treatment, criminal justice programs, community corrections, and private clinical practices, among other venues, and all cases were provided by clinicians working within these service settings throughout all U.S. Census Regions. In addition, we review cases demonstrating high-levels of defensiveness and denial in these mandated teen clients, and ethical ways to break through that barrier towards effective treatment engagement. Finally, we present two brief de-identified treatment case studies, aptly demonstrating defensiveness and denial from a clinical standpoint. We at The SASSI Institute are very proud of this work, and I want to personally thank my co-authors for making this work possible. The article is available free of charge as it was submitted as an open-access article distributed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), which allows readers to copy, redistribute, remix, transform, and reproduce in any medium or format, as long as the original authors are properly cited.
Criminal Justice Publication Accepted
Hello friends and colleagues,
We hope you and your families are all doing well. We wanted to call your attention to our very latest peer reviewed publication, released earlier this month. The title is: Criminal Justice Alcohol and Drug Screening in Practice: Using the Substance Abuse Subtle Screening Inventory to Identify Substance Use Disorder in Offenders.
Now in its fourth iteration (SASSI-4), this article discusses the SASSI screening tools’ utility with criminal offenders and reviews a case study of a young male’s clinical evaluation while incarcerated. While SUD is not the only contributing factor to criminality, it significantly increases the likelihood of legal infraction and violations, placing these individuals at a higher risk of re-offending. Thus, identifying SUD as early as possible in the clinical relationship helps provide tailored treatment to those who need it, while simultaneously reducing the risk of future legal difficulties.
For this case study, we reviewed the SASSI-4 screening results of a 24-year-old male. The case presents an excellent example of the value of early identification of substance use disorder and potential problems in criminal justice settings.
We hope you enjoy the article, and as always, we look forward to your submissions and comments.
New Publication!
The SASSI Institute is pleased to announce the publication of its newest manuscript “Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Co-Morbidities Among Teens in Treatment: SASSI-A3 Correlations in Screening Scores.” Within this article, we review data from teenagers in treatment focusing on mental health diagnoses alongside a DSM-5 diagnosis of substance use disorder. Our hope is that by identifying possible correlations between SASSI-A3 scale scores and diagnosed mental health disorders, (depression and anxiety in particular), will provide clinicians with additional tools to direct the course of subsequent clinical interviews, in particular for teens suffering from co-occurring disorders. This Open-Access article is available here: Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Co-Morbidities Among Teens in Treatment: SASSI-A3 Correlations in Screening Scores
Adolescent Vaping: Examining the Dangers
It is with great pride that we announce the release of our latest adolescent research manuscript. This article is based on one key aspect of the Substance Abuse Subtle Screening Inventory (SASSI) Institute’s forthcoming third iteration of the Adolescent Substance Abuse Subtle Screening Inventory (SASSI-A3). While our primary goal was to develop a screening tool for adolescents that is concordant with the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) guidelines, we found other aspects of the instrument that we felt were beneficial to investigate further. This article, Vaping and Edibles: Self-Reported Usage Patterns Among Teens In and Out of Treatment, focuses on questions regarding cannabidiol (CBD) edible consumption and the extent of vaping to review and subsequently address these dangers in teens.
Teens that begin using alcohol, drugs, and tobacco early in adolescence are more likely to engage in vaping and edible usage. They are also more likely to use at a more frequent rate. Early intervention is a critical component towards preventing possible negative outcomes for substance misusing teens. Identifying these patterns will inevitably direct the course of subsequent clinical interviews and treatment planning.
Adolescent SASSI-A3 Available December 1st, 2020
Our Team at the Institute has been working tirelessly on a two-year research project to bring you an updated adolescent instrument that is validated against the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria. Our research has produced multiple publications and allowed the SASSI-A3 to include some new features, including a brief scale, Prescription Drug (Rx), to accurately identify teens likely to be abusing prescription medications. The updated version also includes new subtle items to reflect current teen alcohol and drug use patterns, as well as several updated questions using contemporary teen verbiage, and additional Face Valid items to identify symptoms in the DSM-5. The instrument also distinguishes likely Substance Use Disorder (SUD) from other psychological disorders; thus, the SASSI-A3 can accurately identify the presence and the absence of SUD, even when other psychological symptoms are present.
The SASSI-A3 will be available through SASSI Online immediately upon release and SASSI Online users can begin using it immediately on December 1st. Paper & Pencil product will be available for pre-order starting November 1st, with our first shipment of SASSI-A3 product/s scheduled for December 4th. After December 1st, the Adolescent SASSI-A2 Paper & Pencil material will remain available for purchase for a limited time, or while supplies last.
Coming Soon: Adolescent SASSI-A3
We wanted to provide you some important SASSI updates. We’re excited to announce that the research findings on the adolescent SASSI-A3 have been published! Within the coming weeks and next few months, we will be concentrating our efforts on publishing the SASSI-A3 instrument, which similarly to the adult screening tool, now includes a prescription drug scale and greater sensitivity to opioids and prescription medications. The updated instrument will be available on our online platform immediately on the release date. We will provide additional details and pre-ordering information as soon as we have a confirmed availability date. You can read the published finding here: Validity of the Adolescent Substance Abuse Screening Inventory-3 (SASSI-A3). We also expect to publish other manuscripts examining co-occurring disorders among some of these adolescents; and the increase and dangers of Vaping as a drug source for them and adults, which has increased dramatically in recent years. These manuscripts are in submission and we hope to have them published by year end as well.
On another note, despite wonderful advances in securing possible cures and vaccines, COVID-19 clinical trials, and worldwide collaboratives to address this virus, the unfortunate reality is that the case numbers continue to climb and sadly, the death toll continues to rise. This has forced many states and local governments, and even the federal government, to change well thought initiatives and plans, and even back-track on some of the openings and relaxing of public health statutes. As a result, many private practitioners and even some long-standing programs have had to continue furloughing operations, or sadly cease operating altogether. With even greater sadness, we have heard multiple reports from the substance abuse, treatment, and correctional field/s about the loss of family, colleagues and friends to this devastating disease, and our hearts and prayers continue to go out to their families.
The SASSI Institute remains committed to helping you stay connected and feel supported during this period of uncertainty. We will be informing you of developments as they occur on our end. But for now, please accept heartfelt wishes from all of us, that you and your families remain safe.
We will get through this together!
Adolescent SASSI-A3 Research Update
The SASSI Institute conducted a validation project on the accuracy of the adolescent SASSI substance use screening measure with respect to the most current nationally accepted diagnostic standards for substance use disorders, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders diagnostic criteria (DSM-5). We are delighted to report that our data analyses is complete and presently we are preparing our findings for peer review submission and subsequent publication and dissemination.
Decision rules were formulated that would provide a good degree of accuracy using our development sample. Yet, the crucial issue is whether the SASSI-A3 scoring rules would be accurate when applied to a sample not used in formulating the decision rules. That is, how well does the SASSI-A3 cross-validate? When tested, we are pleased to report that the SASSI-A3 decision rules on the cross-validation sample results indicated an overall accuracy of 93.41%, 15.01% gain in sensitivity, 0.83% loss in specificity, and 9.75% gain in overall accuracy!
When released, SASSI-A3 will now include updated language reflecting current teen drug trends, a prescription drug abuse scale, as well as additional items. Once the publication review process is finalized, we are looking forward to making this updated tool available to professionals in the field.
We want to once again acknowledge and thank all the individuals and organizations who provided us with their valuable contributions.
Scarlett Baker, A.A. – SASSI A-3 Project Director, and SASSI Institute Director of Training