Pandemic-related fears, job losses and grief combined with the forced isolation and loss of routine drove many long-term heavy drinkers to totally lose control over their drinking and require treatment
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (PRWEB)
June 29, 2021
A new report issued today by Vista Research Group, Inc. reveals that the stress of the pandemic caused 18% more people to need treatment for alcohol or drug addiction in the first quarter of 2021 compared to 2020. The comprehensive State of Addiction Treatment 2021 report includes detailed information on the impact of the pandemic on 13,077 rehab patients and details how the pandemic affected regulatory, marketing, payer and merger & acquisition activity in the industry. The report is available at no cost on http://www.addictiontreatment2021.com.
The biggest increase was among individuals entering treatment for the first time for alcohol use disorder, a group which grew from 19% of all patients in addiction treatment between 2016-2019 to 26% in the first quarter of 2021. “It’s clear that pandemic-related fears, job losses and grief combined with the forced isolation and loss of routine drove many long-term heavy drinkers to totally lose control over their drinking and require treatment,” said Joanna Conti, founder and CEO of Vista Research Group, Inc. “Two-thirds of these first-timers said that they’d been drinking problematically for at least the last three years and one-quarter reported having done so for more than 10 years when they entered treatment.”
As the number of people needing treatment skyrockets and beds fill up, Thomas Doub, Ph.D., Assistant Professor at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and former CEO, Centerstone Research Institute, states “it’s more important than ever for treatment facilities to systematically follow up with patients after they leave treatment so they can measure and continually improve their treatment effectiveness. It’s truly exciting to see Vista Research Group’s data showing that among 17 rehabs doing outcomes research for multiple years, an average of 20% more patients reported not using drugs or alcohol six months post-treatment in the second research year versus the first”.
Unfortunately, less than 1% of addiction treatment centers invest in following up with patients post-treatment. Families interested in sending their loved one to a rehab that has proven it provides highly-effective treatment can do an anonymous search on the nonprofit website http://www.conquer-addiction.org. They’ll see a list of rehabs that meet their specific needs rank-ordered with those with the best independently verified success rates on top, along with detailed data about the impact that center’s treatment had on its patients and the rehab’s contact information.
About Vista Research Group, Inc.:
Founded in 2015, Annapolis-based Vista Research Group has monitored over 50,000 patients during addiction and mental health treatment and followed up with more than 25% of these individuals post-discharge to learn whether they are meeting their drug and alcohol usage goals.
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