The Dasis Report (Drug and Alcohol Information System)

March 11, 2005

Quick Statistics

In Brief

Using Quick Statistics one can access data on admissions to substance abuse treatment and on substance abuse treatment facilities

Data are currently available for the United States, each of the 50 States and the District of Columbia, and 5 U.S. territories

Quick Statistics can be accessed at: http://wwwdasis.samhsa.gov/webt/newmapv1.htm

The most recent substance abuse treatment data are now easily available online. The Office of Applied Studies has created a web site presenting State- and jurisdiction-level profiles for both the Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS) and the National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS).

TEDS

The Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS) is a compilation of data on the demographic and substance abuse characteristics of admissions to and discharges from substance abuse treatment for a given year.¹ Information on treatment admissions and discharges are routinely collected by State administrative systems and then submitted to SAMHSA in a standard format. Each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico report to TEDS.

For each year in which TEDS data have been compiled, Quick Statistics produces summary tables of admissions by primary substance of abuse² and demographic characteristics (sex, age group, race, and ethnicity). Tables can be run for individual States and for all States combined. An important feature of TEDS Quick Statistics is that it provides access to as yet unpublished data for individual States for the most recently completed calendar year. Because some States report data to TEDS as late as the end of the year following the admission year, there is typically a lag of 2 years before a complete year of data for all States can be aggregated for analysis and publication. With TEDS Quick Statistics, however, preliminary data are available for individual States that have submitted their data early. Currently, 2003 data are available for many States, and 2004 data for a few States. Since data for the total United States can only be assembled after all States have reported to TEDS, these data are not yet available for 2003 or 2004.

To access Quick Statistics from TEDS

Step 1: Go to the website and select the State/jurisdiction of interest or select the entire United States (Figure 1).

Step 2: Select "Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS)."

Step 3: Select the year of data that interests you from the drop-down menu. Each year must be run separately.

Figure 1. Quick Statistics: Entry Screen wwwdasis.samhsa.gov/webt/newmapv1.htm

Figure 2 shows the results of a TEDS inquiry for the State of Maryland. The first row of the table includes the total number and percent of admissions in the State of Maryland by the primary substance of abuse. Subsequent sections of the table include the percentage of admissions by sex, age at admission, race, and ethnicity by primary substance of abuse.

Figure 2. Sample TEDS Quick Statistics Table for Maryland

N-SSATS

The National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS) is an annual survey of all known public and private substance abuse treatment facilities in the United States, the District of Columbia, and the territories of Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Guam, Palau, and the Federated States of Micronesia.³ N-SSATS collects information on location, characteristics, treatment services offered, and utilization of treatment services. The survey asks questions about services offered and number of clients in treatment as of the survey reference date-the last business day in March. Like TEDS, data from the N-SSATS can be analyzed at both the State and national level. Currently, N-SSATS Quick Statistics includes data from the 2002 and 2003 surveys.

To access Quick Statistics from N-SSATS

Step 1: Go to the website and select the State/jurisdiction of interest or select the entire United States (Figure 1).

Step 2: Select "National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS)."

Step 3: Select the year of data that interests you from a drop-down menu. Each year must be run separately. Figure 3 shows the results of an N-SSATS inquiry for the State of Maryland. This 3-page profile details the characteristics of substance abuse treatment facilities and provides information on the number of persons in treatment on March 31, 2003. Tables included in this profile present data on facility ownership, facility focus, types of care and services offered, types of payment accepted, and facility licensing.

Figure 3. Sample N-SSATS Quick Statistics Report for Maryland (1st page)

Additional TEDS or N-SSATS Data

More TEDS and N-SSATS data are available through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Data Archive in the form of additional online analyses and public use files.

To access SAMHDA, please go to: http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/SAMHDA/archive.html

For help using SAMHDA, read the short reports on using SAMHDA available on the OAS website at: http://samhsa.gov/data/tutorial.cfm

End Notes

¹ For more information on the TEDS methodology, please see http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/2k2/TEDS/TEDS.cfm
² The primary substance of abuse is the main substance reported at the time of admission.
³ For more information on the N-SSATS methodology, please see http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/2k3/NSSATS/NSSATS.cfm

The DASIS Report is published periodically by the Office of Applied Studies, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). All material appearing in this report is in the public domain and may be reproduced or copied without permission from SAMHSA. Additional copies of this report or other reports from the Office of Applied Studies are available on-line: http://www.oas.samhsa.gov. Citation of the source is appreciated. For questions about this report please e-mail: shortreports@samhsa.hhs.gov

This page was last updated on May 16, 2008.