Providing Effective Treatment for Youth with Co-Occurring Disorders

Providing Effective Treatment for Youth with Co-Occurring Disorders addresses the gap in treatment options for court-involved youth with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders, and the policy and practice changes necessary to address their needs in juvenile drug courts. Research consistently finds that youth with these conditions have an elevated risk of suicide, and consistently have the poorest treatment outcomes. This brief also urges utilizing the integrated treatment for youth with co-occurring disorders. Juvenile drug courts should be familiar with this approach and promote access to integrated treatment programs if youth are to be effectively served.

The National Center for Youth Opportunity and Justice (NCYOJ) originally developed and maintained this resource. The NCYOJ was operated by Policy Research, Inc. and operated from 2001 to 2022 and was formerly known as the National Center for Mental Health and Juvenile Justice. The NCYOJ improved life opportunities for youth through systems and practice improvement initiatives.

This resource should be viewed as a reference document. It has not been updated since its publication. In addition, this document has not been made 508 compliant. If you would like a 508 compliant version of this document, please email communications@prainc.com.

This resource was first shared in 2014.

Citation

Kanary, P., Shepler, R., & Fox, M. (2014). Providing effective treatment for youth with co-occurring disorders. Delmar, NY: National Center for Mental Health and Juvenile Justice. https://www.prainc.com/resource-library/

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