The Screening and Assessment Tools Chart provides a comprehensive guide and links to evidence-based screening and assessment tools you can use with your patients from adolescence to adulthood. It is organized by substance type, patient age, and administration method to help you find the right tool for your practice.
This report provides evidence-based practices for screening and assessment of adults in the justice system with mental illness, substance use disorders, or both. It discusses the importance of instrument selection for screening and assessment and provides detailed descriptions of recommended instruments.
The Clinical Opiate Withdrawal Scale (COWS) is an 11-item scale designed to be administered by a clinician. This tool can be used in both inpatient and outpatient settings to reproducibly rate common signs and symptoms of opiate withdrawal and monitor these symptoms over time. The summed score for the complete scale can be used to help clinicians determine the stage or severity of opiate withdrawal and assess the level of physical dependence on opioids. Practitioners sometimes express concern about the objectivity of the items in the COWS; however, the symptoms of opioid withdrawal have been likened to a severe influenza infection (e.g., nausea, vomiting, sweating, joint aches, agitation, tremor), and patients should not exceed the lowest score in most categories without exhibiting some observable sign or symptom of withdrawal.
In 2007, the National Institute of Corrections partnered with the Urban Institute to develop and test the Transition from Jail to Community (TJC) model for effective jail-to-community transition. The TJC model and initiative advance systems change and local reentry through collaborative, coordinated jail-community partnerships. This brief details the two-stage screening and assessment process to determine risk and need levels in the jail population. It describes the importance of screening and assessment in an evidence-based jail transition strategy, including selecting screening and assessment instruments, implementing a screening and assessment process, and integrating risk and need information into comprehensive jail intervention strategies.
The practice of prescribing in jails and prisons is often different from that in the community. Serious mental illness is common among inmates, and so are co-morbidities such as substance use, impulse-control, attention-deficit/hyperactivity, and personality disorders. Operational requirements, staffing, and the physical plant of the institution may complicate the provision of treatment according to community standards. Problems related to medication nonadherence, as well as the pursuit of medications for nonmedical reasons, are often seen in these settings and may be managed differently than they are elsewhere. Existing practice resources rarely account for these challenges. Pursuant to a recommendation by the Correctional Committee of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law (AAPL), the AAPL Council in May 2015 approved the creation of a task force charged with producing a document on prescribing in correctional facilities.
This document provides facts about treatment from the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM).
The National Practice Guideline is intended to inform and empower clinicians, health system administrators, criminal justice system administrators, and policymakers who are interested in implementing evidence-based practices to improve outcomes for individuals with OUD. This is especially critical in the context of the ongoing COVID-19 emergency, which threatens to curtail patient access to evidence-based treatment. The document is an update to the previous NPG released in 2015 and includes major revisions to 35 existing recommendations, along with the addition of 13 new recommendations.
Abstract: Routine screening for substance use and misuse and co-occurring disorders at all intercepts of the criminal justice system is an effective way of making an initial determination about the presence of behavioral disorders and connecting an individual to further assessment and services. Universal screening for substance use disorders by staff members at jail booking, police holding cells, court lockups, and prior to the first court appearance offers a critical opportunity to identify options for diversion. Ensuring that information from screening and assessments is used for clinical decision making and reentry planning can support individuals in achieving recovery goals and reduce the likelihood of overdose post-release.