Dellor, E. D., Allbright-Campos, M., Lee, J. Y., Bunger, A. C., Gadel, F., & Freisthler, B. (2024). Ohio START: An adaption of the national sobriety treatment and recovery teams model.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0190740924001476?via%3Dihub

Parental substance misuse is one of the pressing issues for children in the child welfare system.  Children affected by parental substance misuse, experience longer stays in out of home placement and are less likely to reunify  with their parents. Ultimately, these children are more likely to experience negative mental and developmental health outcomes as well as increased risk for substance use into adulthood. The National Sobriety Treatment and Recovery Teams (START) model was  designed to support families of parents struggling with substance misuse . The model aims to provide evidence-based practices to aid families in recovery while keeping families together whenever possible. Families who have at least one child younger than 6 years old who entered the child welfare system primarily for substance misuse are eligible for START. Kentucky’s implementation of the model has shown that participating mothers had higher rates of sobriety, demonstrated more effective parenting skills, and children were more likely to remain at home with their family. This study aimed to evaluate the delivery of the START model for families with older children between the ages 6 to18, compared to families with at least one child under 6. This study looked specifically at differences in prompt access to addiction treatment services and . The study found that children’s age group had no effect on families’ access to  addiction treatment services in a timely manner (receiving at least 4 treatment sessions within 38 calendar days) nor on achieving successful completion of case plans. Another significant finding was that the odds of successfully completing case plans increased with each additional child in the home. Perhaps the presence of children provides social support for parents who are battling addiction. Additionally, expanding availability of Ohio START to families with older children,  can reduce substance misuse among youth by participation  in their parents’ treatment journeys. For substance-affected families involved with Ohio’s child welfare system, the Ohio START model continues to provide timely access to addiction treatment services to successfully complete child welfare cases and ultimately to increase safety and permanency for children.