The Perfect Storm: The Prevalence of Co-Occurring Mental Disorders in a Sample of Heroin Users Participating in a Rural Family Drug Court.
Abstract:
Family drug courts (FDCs) have shown a great deal of promise in dealing with parental substance abuse and the problems it creates for the child welfare system. However, the current opioid epidemic presents special challenges for FDCs. This paper reports on the prevalence of symptoms of co-occurring mental disorders among a sample of forty-nine parents with a history of heroin use who are participating in a FDC in a rural Ohio county, as well as the challenges these specifc individuals present. Assessment results indicate that three-fourths of the sample have the symptoms of at least one mental health problem. The most common condition, experienced by over two-thirds of the sample was mood disorders (including depression). Other common disorders included ADD/ADHD, general anxiety disorder and traumatic stress disorder. More than forty percent of the sample experienced symptoms of both an internalizing and an externalizing disorder. Implications of these co-occurring mental disorders among heroin using parents for FDCs in general are discussed and directions for future research are considered.
Keyword:
Family Drug Courts, Opioid Epidemic, Heroin Use, Co-occurring Mental Disorders, Child Welfare