Substance Use
CAI partners with health and social service agencies across the country to strengthen substance use disorder (SUD) programs, including those addressing opioid overdose. We help treatment providers implement evidence-based practices, address co-occurring conditions, and integrate screening and referral into broader care settings. Our approach emphasizes collaboration between health departments and community-based providers to ensure coordinated, cost-effective, high-quality care.
With more than 30 years of experience working on the issue of substance use as a driver of poor health outcomes, CAI has supported the field through major public health challenges, from the HIV epidemic to today’s opioid overdose crisis. We have contributed to the adoption of innovative approaches, such as motivational interviewing, peer support networks, and person-centered approaches that foster client self-sufficiency and we continue to provide training and technical assistance that respond to emerging needs across the country, including work in Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Mexico, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Texas, and Washington, D.C.
Our commitment to the field is demonstrated by CAI’s most recently developed model for training and technical assistance, the SUCCEED Approach (Substance Use as a Chronic Condition: Engagement and Education). This model, which is centered on an understanding of substance use as a chronic condition that can be managed with support, has shown promising results utilizing evidence-informed resources, to help individuals transitioning from incarceration build their skills to self-manage SUD as well as bolstering the capacity of CBOs to provide wraparound supportive services during this crucial transition period.
Our staff bring deep expertise in substance use treatment and counseling, and CAI is accredited to provide continuing education for Credentialed Alcoholism and Substance Use Counselors. Drawing on this experience, we equip providers with the tools and strategies they need to improve outcomes and better serve their communities.
Related Projects
National Center of Excellence for Tobacco-Free Recovery
Summary: CAI is engaging behavioral health providers, state agencies, tobacco-users, and other stakeholders in efforts to reduce the high rate of commercial tobacco use among people with mental and substance use conditions.
Project SUCCEED
Summary: This national project helps organizations provide incarcerated people with the tools and support they need to manage substance use disorders before they are released from prison, so that they can self-manage relapse prevention over the long term once they’re released; helps providers engage people both before and after they are released from prison; and equips community-based organizations to be a key resource for people in their first year after release from prison.