Enrich Behavioral Health’s Intensive Outpatient Treatment Program (also known as IOP for “Intensive Outpatient Program”) is a treatment program designed for persons diagnosed with a substance use disorder. This program is licensed by the Louisiana Department of Health & Hospitals. IOP programs may be recommended for persons who do not need a more intensive residential or withdrawal management (“detox”) level of care. IOP can also enable people in recovery to continue their recovery therapies following successful treatment at a higher level of care or as a more intensive treatment for those in a lower level outpatient setting who are struggling to maintain their function. This type of program sees individuals on a part-time yet intensive schedule, designed to accommodate work and family life.

Enrich Behavioral Health’s IOP is overseen by a physician, who is a board-certified addictionologist by the American Society of Addiction Medicine and the American Board of Preventive Medicine, as well as a licensed clinical psychologist, both of whom are trained in the delivery of evidenced-based practices to clients. Individual and group sessions are facilitated by the agency’s Clinical Manager who is also a mental health specialist. She has experience in both the mental health and social services sectors. In addition, she has received specialized training in case management, care coordination, vocational rehabilitation, and Applied Behavior Analysis.

Program Goal

The goal of Enrich Behavioral Health’s IOP is to provide evidenced-based cognitive-behavioral approaches for treating substance use disorders, as well as co-occurring mental health disorders that are often associated with substance use disorders. The types of therapies include Motivational Interviewing, the Community Reinforcement Approach, and the Matrix Model. These approaches incorporate social, recreational, familial, and vocational strategies to aid clients in their recovery and process of change. The treatment is designed to provide the client with in-depth sessions that address the client’s substance use issues comprehensively by tailoring the treatment to each individual client’s needs.

Enrich Behavioral Health’s IOP will provide an opportunity for clients to continue to live in their own home while remaining in control of their own life. The client will still have an opportunity or get a job so that he/she can rebuild their personal life with the help and support they receive from the program. Clients will be responsible for participating in the treatment programs at the local agency, according to the client’s scheduled treatment plan.

What We Offer

Enrich Behavioral Health’s IOP is an intensive treatment program that provides 9 hours of programs and services per week, for up to 12 weeks depending on the needs of each person. Clients meet 3 days per week for 3 hours each day for a maximum of 24 hourly sessions. The sessions are conducted on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 9:00 A.M. until 12:00 P.M. Breaks are included; however, we do not encourage smoke breaks, provide any accessories to enable continued smoking, or allow smoking paraphernalia to be left on our property. We do not forbid tobacco product use outside of the property, but we do encourage cessation efforts. Our policies support our recovery efforts.

The topics for the sessions include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Lifestyle enhancement – self-care as it relates to physical health (i.e., eating, exercise, and overall health)
• Coping strategies to limit the risk of relapse
• Employment & career skills
• Problem-solving – the development and implementation of techniques for dealing with stressful situations
• Stages of change
• Money management & budgeting
• Interpersonal relationships – the development and nurturing of relationships with family, friends, and coworkers that will aid in the recovery
• Relapse prevention

Evidence-based Substance Use Disorder

The American Society of Addiction Medicine defines addiction as follows:

“Addiction is characterized by inability to consistently abstain, impairment in behavioral control, craving, diminished recognition of significant problems with one’s behaviors and interpersonal relationships, and a dysfunctional emotional response. Like other chronic diseases, addiction often involves cycles of relapse and remission. Without treatment or engagement in recovery activities, addiction is progressive and can result in disability or premature death.”

Choosing the right addiction treatment option is vital. Often times, people do attempt to quit but have a treatment option that is not tailored to meet their needs. The staff at Enrich Behavioral Health’s Intensive Outpatient Treatment Program utilizes treatment that is supported by research that proves its effectiveness in helping people to make emotional and behavioral changes. This ensures that those people who are attempting to enter into recovery have the best possible resources available.

Evidence-based Substance Use Disorder Treatment Involves 3 Key Components

1. Research Findings: Enrich utilizes evidence-based treatments that use methods which are supported by research and have been shown to be effective in our substance abuse treatment centers. This means clients receive treatment which is demonstrably helpful in aiding recovery.
2. Professional Treatment Team: At Enrich, clients are monitored and treated by trained professionals to ensure that treatments are properly performed. Professionals are able to evaluate an individual’s history so they can adapt treatment plans specific to the individual’s needs.
3. Client’s Personal Values and Needs: Individualized treatment at Enrich includes tailoring treatment to the client’s personal values and needs including physical, mental, emotional, and/or social, in nature.

Collectively, the aforementioned components of evidence-based practice will provide clients with comprehensive care during the oftentimes challenging journey to recovery. Clients should be afforded the opportunity to have their best chances to returning to an appropriate level of previous functioning.

Substance Abuse Treatment Manual

Enrich utilizes a treatment manual comprised of 24 hourly sessions. The manual includes sessions that address a number of areas (i.e., monetary budgeting, interpersonal relationships, employment, triggers, etc.). The content of the manual is taken from a variety of scientific resources. It is also grounded in the National Institute of Drug Abuse’s 13 Principles of Effective Treatment, which are noted below:

1. Addiction is a complex but treatable disease that affects brain function and behavior.
2. No single treatment is appropriate for everyone.
3. Treatment needs to be readily available.
4. Effective treatment attends to multiple needs of the individual, not just his or her drug abuse (now called substance use).
5. Remaining in treatment for an adequate period of time is critical.
6. Behavioral therapies—including individual, family, or group counseling—are the most commonly used forms of drug abuse (now called substance use) treatment.
7. Medications are an important element of treatment for many clients, especially when combined with counseling and other behavioral therapies.
8. An individual’s treatment and services plan must be assessed continually and modified as necessary to ensure that it meets his or her changing needs.
9. Many drug-addicted individuals (now called individuals with substance use disorders) also have other mental disorders.
10. Medically assisted detoxification is only the first stage of addiction treatment and by itself does little to change long-term drug abuse.
11. Treatment does not need to be voluntary to be effective.
12. Drug use (now called substance use) during treatment must be monitored continuously, as lapses during treatment do occur.

Eligibility Requirements

The program is designed for persons who have not responded to other forms of treatment, have external requirements (i.e., court-mandated treatment), and/or prefer an intensive form of treatment than inpatient services. After completing an intake packet, he or she must undergo a clinical/medical assessment by our licensed clinical psychologist prior to enrolling into IOP. To be eligible, persons must meet the following criteria:

• The client must be 18 years of age or older;
• The client must agree to follow all program rules;
• The client must have a diagnosable substance use disorder or significant hazardous use;
• The client must meet ASAM criteria for this level of care, or, if a client meets at a higher level, an exception is made which includes an agreement to enter a higher level if not successful at IOP.