Improving Addiction Treatment Through New Technologies
From 2005 to 2007, researchers at the Center for Health Enhancement Systems Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison launched Innovations for Recovery, an initiative to explore how information technology can improve treatment and recovery programs for people who suffer from substance abuse and dependence. In 2008, in a related project, the center examined the potential of a popular Web-based virtual world to enhance recovery outcomes.
Key Results
Created the Innovations for Recovery (IFR) Network prototype. Using a combination of mobile technology and Web-based applications, the model illustrates how people in recovery can have anytime, anywhere access to six core services: social support, virtual counseling, education and training, location tracking, assessment and alerts.
Crafted an interactive website that uses streaming video and flash animation to demonstrate how the prototype works. The site provides other information about how technologies, such as smartphones and Web-based databases, can improve services to patients in recovery from substance abuse.
Convened a two-day meeting of eight leaders in addiction treatment to discuss how the Internet-based virtual world, Second Life, can augment traditional addiction treatment programs. An online report summarizes the meeting findings.
Obtained two federal grants to follow through with the recommendations.
Recommended
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Related
- State-Provider Partnerships Strengthen Addiction Treatment Access and Retention December 1, 2011
- Automating Addiction Treatment January 1, 2009
- The Use of Evidence-Based Standards for Addiction Treatment November 4, 2011
- About this grant