From the Mailbox
Visitors to the Alcoholism site at About.com have responded to some issues raised in recent articles that we have published here. Their comments are published below in a "letters to the editor" format.
Treatment in Prison
I am not a corrections employee, however I am part of a 'substance abuse treatment team', providing treatment within the walls of a prison, supported and kept safe by corrections employees. They have my greatest respect and appreciation. Without the Security half of our treatment team, we could not do our job.
I can only tell you that after almost 7 years working in a prison based treatment program, treatment works and does reduce recidivism. Do client's relapse after treatment? Of course some of them do, just like following treatment in the free world. But many more do NOT relapse, they go on to lead productive lives and the public does not have to continue to support them in prison (or their families on welfare while they are in prison).
As for the cost of treatment, I think if people would check the records in the states that are offering effective prison based programs they would be very surprised and possibly even impressed that so much can be done for such a relatively small amount.
There are a lot of dedicated people out here doing a whole lot with very little money in a lot of prisons across this country. I don't mean to offend anyone or their opinion because we are all entitled to have one, but those of us involved in prison based treatment are there because we believe in it and are seeing it work on a daily, sometimes even hourly, basis. As you know, Recovery is a process, not a destination. Some client's take large leaps forward, some take small steps and they all count.
Thank you for listening and to those of you who are also "in the trenches" (as we are so fond of saying) keep up the good work and keep smiling.
Dottie B.
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