Back to Institute Archive" Grant to Fund Effort to Improve Drug Treatment Services and Research"
The University of South Florida's Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute has been awarded a $248-thousand federal grant to improve substance abuse prevention and treatment services for individuals involved with the criminal justice system. The Suncoast Practice/Research Collaborative project is aimed at bridging gaps between science and practice by creating an alliance between researchers, policy-makers, and treatment providers.
The project is funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's Center for Substance Abuse Treatment. It is being conducted in partnership with key criminal justice agencies, consumers, the Florida Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association (FADAA), and three community-based treatment providers in the Tampa Bay area - the Agency for Community Treatment Services (ACTS), the Drug Abuse Comprehensive Coordinating Office (DACCO), and Operation PAR.
"Too often, for a variety of reasons, the knowledge we gain through research fails to get put into practice," said Dr. David L. Shern, Dean of the de la Parte Institute. "This grant will go a long way toward opening lines of communication, fostering the exchange of information, and ultimately, improving alcohol and drug treatment services."
Reflecting a national trend in tougher sentencing policies for drug offenses, state and federal prison populations have more than doubled since 1985. Approximately 23 percent of inmates in state prisons and 60 percent of inmates in federal prisons are incarcerated for drug offenses. Studies show that as many as 85 percent of prisoners need substance abuse treatment services, yet only between 10 and 13 percent receive them.
According to Dr. Roger H. Peters, Principal Investigator on the grant, "the gap between knowledge and clinical practice related to effective offender treatment strategies has not been well bridged by substance abuse researchers. Nor has the practice community readily embraced new research and clinical information in this area."
The Suncoast Practice/Research Collaborative partners will develop an integrated network to identify, share and apply information to support and promote effective substance abuse treatment services in criminal justice settings. Project components include a needs assessment to examine research and knowledge application priorities in the Tampa Bay area, regular meetings between researchers and practitioners to establish a more effective exchange of information, and implementation of a pilot research project.
This is one of nine Practice/Research grants funded across the nation, and the only grant in the state of Florida.