Parent perspectives of engagement in the strengthening families program: An evidence-based intervention for families in child welfare and affected by parental substance use

2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 735-742 ◽  
Author(s):  
Becci A. Akin ◽  
Michelle Johnson-Motoyama ◽  
Sharah Davis ◽  
Megan Paceley ◽  
Jody Brook
Keyword(s):  
Substance Use ◽  
Child Welfare ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Parent Perspectives ◽  
Parental Substance Use ◽  
Strengthening Families Program ◽  
Strengthening Families

scholarly journals Prevention Adaptation of an Evidence-Based Treatment for Parents Involved With Child Welfare Who Use Substances

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gracelyn Cruden ◽  
Shelley Crawford ◽  
Lisa Saldana
Keyword(s):  
Substance Use ◽  
Child Welfare ◽  
Systems Science ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Evidence Based Treatment ◽  
Methamphetamine Use ◽  
Engagement Strategies ◽  
Parent Outcomes ◽  
Key Variables ◽  
Parental Substance Use

Background: Parental substance use, especially opioid misuse and/or methamphetamine use, is a key driver for recent increases in family involvement with child welfare and foster care placements in the United States. There is an urgent need for programs that prevent parental substance use disorders, yet few prevention programs exist that target parents’ unique needs and strengths. Adapting evidence-based treatment approaches for prevention might be an efficient, effective way to address this gap. The current study informed the rigorous adaptation of an evidence-based treatment that supports families involved with child welfare due to substance use, Families Actively Improving Relationships (FAIR), to a prevention-oriented intervention: “PRE-FAIR.” FAIR entails four treatment domains: substance use, parenting, mental health, and ancillary services (e.g., housing, medical care, and food). FAIR significantly improved parenting and reduced parental substance use in three rigorous treatment trials, but FAIR’s effectiveness in preventing the initiation or escalation of opioid misuse and/or methamphetamine use is untested. To inform adaptation, particular attention was paid to operationalizing strategies underlying a key hypothesized mediator of successful parent outcomes—engagement.Methods: Graduated FAIR parents (n = 9) and FAIR administrators, clinical supervisors, and clinicians (n = 11) participated in semi-structured interviews. Content analysis was used to identify key variables driving FAIR engagement and parent outcomes. Causal loop diagramming, a qualitative systems science method, was employed to operationalize emergent themes, and describe how causal links between key variables interrelated dynamically over time.Results: Themes reinforced the value of FAIR’s treatment domains for supporting parent’s sobriety and parenting skills within a prevention orientation. Ancillary supports and strong relationships were particularly crucial for helping parents cope with stressors leading to substance use. Five engagement strategies were identified as essential to parent success: 24/7 clinician availability, in-person clinician advocacy, in-home delivery, strengths-based interactions, and urinalysis. Implications for PRE-FAIR engagement strategies and dosage were identified.Discussion: Traditional qualitative analyses and qualitative analyses based in systems science can inform rigorous adaptations of evidence-based treatment programs for prevention. Future research will explore additional required, fidelity-consistent prevention adaptations to FAIR, and the impact of PRE-FAIR on parental substance use and child welfare case outcomes.

scholarly journals Establishing the Effectiveness of Enhanced Implementation Methods in Preventative Behavioral Health

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah A. Stoddard ◽  
Barrett Wallace Montgomery ◽  
Leah D. Maschino ◽  
Kristen Senters Young ◽  
Julia W. Felton ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Substance Use ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Behavioral Health ◽  
Implementation Strategies ◽  
Great Promise ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Behavioral Health Services ◽  
Strengthening Families Program ◽  
Strengthening Families ◽  
Organizational Needs

Background: More than 20 million Americans ages 12 and older have a past-year substance use disorder. Majority-minority cities, including Flint, MI, suffer disproportionately from higher rates of substance use and are less likely to have access to evidence-based prevention and treatment interventions relative to predominately White and wealthier cities. Thus, identifying approaches that can improve implementation of evidence-based substance use practices is a critical public health goal. In the current report, we provide a detailed protocol for the implementation and evaluation of the Strengthening Flint Families initiative, a community-based implementation study of a multi-level behavioral health intervention that includes peer recovery coaching, the Strengthening Families Program, and a multimedia campaign. Our goal is to improve family resilience and reduce behavioral health disparities in the Flint community, as an example of how this could be done in other communities. Our overall strategy includes community-informed implementation enhancements to increase adoption and sustainment of evidence-based behavioral health services. Methods: This project has 4 phases that align with study aims- 1) a systematic assessment of behavioral health organizations in the Flint Area to understand organizational needs and strengths in Flint; 2) tailoring implementation strategies for one individual-level evidence-based practice, peer recovery coaching, and one family-level evidence-based program, the Strengthening Families Program; 3) building capacity and promoting sustainability; and 4) evaluating primary (implementation) and secondary (effectiveness) outcomes. Implementation outcomes are derived from the RE-AIM framework and effectiveness outcomes will be assessed at the individual, family, and community levels. Discussion: Understanding and addressing the behavioral health organizational needs, strengths, and barriers to program adoption and referral in Flint offers great promise to strengthen the behavioral health network of providers serving Flint residents. Moreover, understanding barriers to accessing and implementing behavioral health services in low-resource communities may prove to be a valuable tool for discovering the most effective implementation methods tailored to specific organizations. These evidence informed approaches may prove useful for cities outside of Flint.

scholarly journals Examining Intervention Component Dosage Effects on Substance Use Initiation in the Strengthening Families Program: for Parents and Youth Ages 10–14

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
pp. 852-862 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily J. LoBraico ◽  
Gregory M. Fosco ◽  
Daniel Max Crowley ◽  
Cleve Redmond ◽  
Richard L. Spoth ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Substance Use ◽  
Intervention Component ◽  
Dosage Effects ◽  
Strengthening Families Program ◽  
Strengthening Families ◽  
Substance Use Initiation

Strategies to Avoid Replication Failure With Evidence-Based Prevention Interventions: Case Examples From the Strengthening Families Program

2018 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 75-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karol L. Kumpfer ◽  
Lawrence M. Scheier ◽  
Jaynie Brown
Keyword(s):  
Parenting Practices ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Case Examples ◽  
Developmental Problems ◽  
Strengthening Families Program ◽  
The Right ◽  
Strengthening Families ◽  
Replication Failure

Research has found disturbing long-term effects of poor parenting on children’s behavioral health including addiction, delinquency, depression/anxiety, and poorer health as adults. Poor parenting practices thus contribute substantially to the health crisis in America. However, skilled, nurturing parents, or caretakers can help youth avoid these developmental problems. A number of family and parenting evidence-based interventions (EBIs) that teach parenting skills are now available for dissemination. Unfortunately, replications of EBIs do not always produce the original positive results. Organizations that seek to use family EBIs to improve parenting and family skills need to avoid practices that create replication failure. We examine several possible factors that contribute to replication failure using examples from five replications of the EBI “Iowa Strengthening Families Program for ages 10–14.” We then share six strategies conducive to avoid replication failures including (1) choosing the right program and implementation strategy for the population, (2) administering the right “dosage,” (3) choosing and properly training implementers, (4) maintaining program integrity and adherence, (5) ensuring cultural sensitivity, and (6) ensuring accurate and complete reporting of evaluation results. These guidelines can advance prevention science to meet the demands of a growing public health agenda.

Building Family Resilience Through an Evidence-Based Program: Results From the Spanish Strengthening Families Program

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 409-417
Author(s):  
Carmen Orte ◽  
Lluís Ballester ◽  
Joan Amer ◽  
Marga Vives
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Adaptation ◽  
Family Resilience ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Family Strengths ◽  
Family Competence ◽  
Resilience Scale ◽  
The Family ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Strengthening Families Program ◽  
Strengthening Families

In recent years, family resilience has come to be seen as more of a process than an outcome. This process involves different family members who receive training during the course of family prevention programs. The Family Competence Program is a Spanish cultural adaptation of the Strengthening Families Program, which uses a Family Strengths and Resilience Scale. With this scale of 11 items, encompassing aspects such as communication, cohesion and family organization or parental skills, changes in family resilience were measured before and after the application of the program. The results point to positive changes. Potential links with family vulnerability were also tested, but the results of the study do not suggest any association between resilience and family vulnerability.

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