ABSTRACT
There are a wide range of psychosocial and pharmacological interventions for the treatment of alcohol and drug misuse which can be delivered across all the four tiers of the Models of Care. Psychosocial interventions encompass a wide range treatment strategy such as brief interventions, counselling, cognitive behavioural therapy, family therapy, social skills training, supportive work and complementary therapy. Pharmacological interventions are categorised as detoxification, medications for relapse prevention and nutritional supplements. There is evidence to suggest that drug misuse treatment is effective in terms of reduced substance misuse, improvements in personal and social functioning; reduced public health and safety risks; reduced criminal behaviour (McLellan et al. 1997, Prendergast et al. 2002, NTA 2006a). There is also evidence of the effectiveness of psychosocial therapies and pharmacotherapies in
j Discuss the principle of psychosocial interventions.
