OPTIONS FOR RECOVERY - PROMOTING PERINATAL DRUG AND ALCOHOL RECOVERY,CHILD HEALTH, AND FAMILY STABILITY

The perceived magnitude of perinatal chemical dependency in California was the impetus for an interagency partnership within the California Health and Welfare Agency called Options for Recovery (OFR). It offere d alcohol and drug treatment and recovery, case management, and recrui tment and training of foster parents and relative caregivers to chemic ally dependent pregnant and parenting women. A 3-year, multi-method ev aluation was conducted that included quantitative analyses of secondar y data sources, semi-structured interviews with staff and clients, sel f-administered surveys of staff and clients, client focus groups, and child developmental assessments. Findings indicate that to achieve suc cess, programs structured on the OFR model must recruit chemically dep endent women early in their pregnancies, provide mechanisms for retent ion, offer a continuum of treatment modalities within the service syst em, make available a comprehensive array of ancillary services, and be responsive to the social, cultural, and familial context within which these women live.