Macro Practice Skills in a Drug Rehab Program

This report presents a description of the macro practice skills employed by the writer in working with a drug rehabilitation program located in Kansas City, Missouri, which provides both direct social work services to drug addicted individuals referred for assistance or self-referring. In addition, the agency, Imani House, also provides case management and referral services that incorporate networking with Narcotics Anonymous, Alcoholics Anonymous, and a host of other community-based, public and private sector organizations such as the Kansas City Housing Authority and the Kansas public assistance program.

The report identifies the nature of the Agency, discusses literature relevant to macro practice concerns with respect to this particular type of service agency, and then chronicles some of the activities undertaken by the writer in developing programs at the agency. Reference to cultural diversity and the underpinning theories of macro social work practice is contained in the report.

Kirst-Ashman and Hull (2005) identify a number of significant issues which impact at the macro level with respect to social work practice and interventions. In general, macro practice issues address organizational or community concerns from the social work perspective rather than micro level social work practices which tend to focus on individuals. At issue herein is an explication of

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noted that the frequency of attendance at 12-step programs is itself a predictor of rehabilitation success. Specifically, these researchers state that treatment programs such as that provided by Imani House, taken in conjunction with 12-step programming, is likely to improve service outcomes. Many of the clients served at Imani House are referred through the criminal justice system. Czuchry and Dansereau (2000) examined the impact of a treatment readiness program on probationers receiving substance abuse treatment in a modified therapeutic community. They found that treatment readiness training can be extremely useful in facilitating the success of treatment outcomes. Service providers that are able to work collaboratively with a variety of different organizations are seen as better able to prepare clients for a positive response to treatment. Collaboration is very much a "macro practice" as identified by Kirst-Ashman and Hull (2005), who note that in an era of declining resources (financial as well as human) for social service program delivery, maximization of community-based resources through collaborative practice, referrals and networking is a necessity. Collaborative action, as described by Davis, Jason, Ferrari,
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2450
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page)