National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services

September 10, 2009

Services Provided by Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities in the United States

In Brief
In 2007, almost all substance abuse treatment facilities offered one or more types of counseling (99 percent), ancillary services (99 percent), assessment and pre-treatment services (98 percent), transitional services (96 percent), and testing services (87 percent) The most common specific services provided by facilities included individual counseling (96 percent of all facilities), substance abuse education (94 percent), screening for substance abuse (92 percent), and discharge planning (92 percent) Testing for tuberculosis, HIV, hepatitis, and sexually transmitted diseases, conditions that often accompany substance abuse, were provided by a third or less of all facilities

The most effective substance abuse treatment programs provide services that meet the individual needs of the client. While facility size, location, and other characteristics can have an impact on the types and number of services provided, substance abuse treatment facilities usually provide a range of services. Understanding the nature and extent of the services provided by substance abuse treatment facilities may help Federal, State, and local governments identify gaps in services and allocate resources more effectively.

Using data from the 2007 National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS), this report summarizes the services provided by substance abuse treatment facilities in the United States. In 2007, 13,648 substance abuse treatment facilities responded to N-SSATS. Facilities were asked about the provision of 44 services, grouped into six categories: assessment and pre-treatment, counseling, testing, pharmacotherapies, transitional, and ancillary.

Assessment/Pre-treatment and Counseling

At least one assessment and pre-treatment service was provided by 98 percent of all substance abuse treatment facilities (Figure 1). The most common assessment and pre-treatment services provided by facilities were screening for substance abuse (92 percent) and comprehensive substance abuse assessment or diagnosis (89 percent). A majority of facilities also provided screening for mental health disorders (60 percent).

The use of counseling in substance abuse treatment programs was reported by 99 percent of all facilities. Most facilities provided individual counseling (96 percent) and the majority provided group counseling or family counseling (89 and 72 percent, respectively). Marital/couples counseling was provided by less than half (45 percent) of all facilities.

Figure 1. Percentage of All Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities Offering Assessment and Pre-treatment Services: 2007

Source: 2007 SAMHSA National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS).

Figure 1 Table. Percentage of All Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities Offering Assessment and Pre-treatment Services: 2007
Assessments and Pre-treatment Services	Percent
Total	98%
Screening for Substance Abuse	92%
Comprehensive Substance Abuse Assessment or Diagnosis	89%
Screening for Mental Health Disorders	60%
Community Outreach	49%
Comprehensive Mental Health Assessment or Diagnosis	42%
Interim Services	40%
Source: 2007 SAMHSA National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS).

Testing and Pharmacotherapies

Testing services were provided in 87 percent of all substance abuse treatment facilities. The majority of facilities offered drug or alcohol urine screening (83 percent) or breathalyzer or other blood alcohol testing (58 percent) (Figure 2). Communicable disease testing was provided by a much smaller proportion of facilities.

Figure 2. Percentage of All Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities Offering Testing Services: 2007

Source: 2007 SAMHSA National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS).

Figure 2 Table. Percentage of All Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities Offering Testing Services: 2007
Testing Services	Percent
Total	87%
Drug/Alcohol Urine Screening	83%
Breathalyzer/Other Blood Alcohol Testing	58%
TB Screening	34%
HIV Testing	29%
Screening For Hepatitis C	23%
Screening For Hepatitis B	22%
STD Testing	21%
Source: 2007 SAMHSA National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS).

Almost half (47 percent) of all facilities provided pharmacotherapies (Figure 3). Medications for the treatment of psychiatric disorders were the most common provided pharmacotherapy (35 percent of all facilities).

Opioid treatment programs (OTPs) were available in 8 percent of all facilities. Over half (55 percent) of all facilities with OTPs provided both maintenance and detoxification. More than one third (37 percent) of facilities with OTPs provided maintenance only and 8 percent provided detoxification only.

Figure 3. Percentage of All Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities Offering Pharmacotherapies: 2007

Source: 2007 SAMHSA National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS).

Figure 3 Table. Percentage of All Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities Offering Pharmacotherapies: 2007
Pharmacotherapies	Percent
Total	47%
Medications for Psychiatric Disorders	35%
Campral	17%
Antabuse	17%
Nicotine Replacement	16%
Naltrexone	15%
Buprenorphine	14%
Methadone	11%
Source: 2007 SAMHSA National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS).

Transitional and Ancillary

Most substance abuse treatment facilities provided transitional services (96 percent of all facilities). Discharge planning was provided by 92 percent of all facilities and aftercare or continuing care services by 81 percent.

One or more of the 17 specified ancillary services were provided by 99 percent of all facilities (Table 1). Ancillary services provided by more than half of all facilities included substance abuse education (94 percent); case management services (76 percent); social skills development (66 percent); HIV or AIDS education, counseling, or support (56 percent); mental health services (54 percent); and assistance with obtaining social services (52 percent).

Table 1. Percentage of All Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities Offering Ancillary Services: 2007
Ancillary Service	Percent
Total	99%
Substance Abuse Education	94%
Case Management Services	76%
Social Skills Development	66%
HIV or AIDS Education, Counseling, or Support	56%
Mental Health Services	54%
Assistance with Obtaining Social Services	52%
Health Education other than HIV/AIDS	49%
Self-help Groups	47%
Mentoring/Peer Support	45%
Assistance in Locating Housing for Clients	43%
Transportation Assistance to Treatment	36%
Domestic Violence—Family or Partner Violence Services	36%
Employment Counseling or Training for Clients	34%
Early Intervention for HIV	25%
Child Care for Clients’ Children	8%
Acupuncture	4%
Residential Beds for Clients’ Children	4%
Source: 2007 SAMHSA National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS).

Discussion

Almost all substance abuse treatment facilities offered one or more types of counseling, ancillary services, assessment and pre-treatment services, transitional services, and testing services. The ability of facilities to offer specific types of services may be influenced by facility size, level of funding, location, client needs, and other characteristics. Over three quarters of facilities offered individual counseling, substance abuse education, screening for substance abuse, discharge planning, comprehensive substance abuse assessment and diagnosis, group counseling, drug or alcohol urine screening, aftercare services, and case management. Overall, substance abuse treatment facilities offer a range of services that are central to and supportive of the needs of their clients and that benefit the health and overall well-being of communities.

Suggested Citation

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Office of Applied Studies. (September 10, 2009). The N-SSATS Report: Services Provided by Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities in the United States. Rockville, MD.

The National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS) is an annual survey of all substance abuse treatment facilities in the United States, both public and private, that are known to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). N-SSATS is one component of the Drug and Alcohol Services Information System (DASIS), an integrated data system maintained by the Office of Applied Studies, SAMHSA.

N-SSATS collects three types of information from facilities: characteristics of individual facilities such as services offered and types of treatment provided, primary focus of the facility, and payment options; client count information such as counts of clients served by service type and number of beds designated for treatment; and general information such as licensure, certification, or accreditation and facility website availability. In 2007, N-SSATS collected information from 13,648 facilities from all 50 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Palau, and the Virgin Islands. Information and data for this report are based on data reported to N-SSATS for the survey reference date March 30, 2007.

The N-SSATS Report is prepared by the Office of Applied Studies, SAMHSA; Synectics for Management Decisions, Inc., Arlington, Virginia; and by RTI International in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina (RTI International is the trade name of Research Triangle Institute). Information on the most recent N-SSATS is available in the following publication:

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Office of Applied Studies. (2008). National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS): 2007. Data on Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities (DASIS Series: S-44, DHHS Publication No. (SMA) 08-4348). Rockville MD: Author.

Access the latest N-SSATS reports at:
http:/oas.samhsa.gov/dasis.htm

Access the latest N-SSATS public use files at:
http://samhsa.gov/data/SAMHDA.htm

Other substance abuse reports are available at:
http://oas.samhsa.gov

The N-SSATS 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 online: http://oas.samhsa.gov. Citation of the source is appreciated. For questions about this report, please e-mail: shortreports@samhsa.hhs.gov.

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