What is the Addiction Screening & Assessment?
What is an addiction screening and why do you need to ask me so many questions? These are common concerns that arise when someone calls into our Florida addiction and recovery center seeking treatment. The addiction screening and assessment is a short evaluation that our admissions coordinators perform over the phone to determine whether you (or someone you love) is an appropriate candidate for treatment at St. John’s Recovery Place.
The screening will take approximately 15-20 minutes to complete. All of the answers that you provide are confidential and it’s very important to answer as truthfully as you can. The answers that you provide are used by our medical team to determine the initial recommendation for (or against) treatment in our program. Your answers will not be shared with anyone outside our medical team so you do not have to worry about a loved one or family member finding out, your work finding out, or anyone else finding out for that matter.
What to Expect
The questions we ask as part of our screening and assessment range from basic demographic questions such as your name, birth date, and address, to questions directly relative to your drug or alcohol use. You may feel like we’re asking too many questions, or that we’re asking you to be too thorough in your answers, but the reasons we do this is to help us paint a picture of your substance abuse and need for treatment so that others (such as our medical team and your insurance provider) will understand the importance of recommending that you receive treatment.
Importance of Addiction Treatment Assessment
The comprehensive diagnostic assessment that we perform when you call in for treatment at St. John’s Recovery Place helps us to determine whether a true addiction to drugs or alcohol exists and if treatment in a residential setting seems like the appropriate recommendation to help you. Clients are encouraged to be honest and willful in answering the treatment assessment questions as the answers provided assist our staff in determining the severity of addiction & potential immediate needs for treatment.
We’ll factor many of the conditions that are addressed in the assessment into your treatment plan. For example, as you answer questions about your physical and mental health, family involvement, spiritual needs, and psychological health our staff is taking note so that we can implement resources into your treatment to address all such needs. This is all part of how we build a comprehensive treatment plan that is unique and created just for YOU.
Please be prepared to answer the following types of questions during the addiction assessment:
Demographic Questions
Including things like, how old are you, what is your gender, what grade of school did you complete, are you in school now, etc.
Physical Health Questions
We’ll take a history of your physical health as well as any psychiatric health issues that have impacted you in the past. This includes asking you about past surgeries, medications and allergies. It also includes asking questions about your current medication use, disabilities, and whether there are any mental health issues we should know about such as anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder or schizophrenia.
Toxicology Questions
We’ll ask you about you past and present substance abuse. This will help us to get an idea as to the potential presence of dangerous substances in your system. Remember, your answers are not used to harm you or get you in trouble in any way – please be honest with us so that we can define the appropriate level of treatment for your needs.
Substance Abuse Questions
We’ll ask you questions about how long you used substances, even the ones that you say you are no longer using. We’ll ask you about periods of abstinence and treatment. We’ll also ask you how frequently you use and how much of a substance you are using.
Physical Vitals Questions
We’ll ask you how you’re currently feeling and whether or not you have trouble functioning as a result of your drug or alcohol use. If you don’t feel well, or if you have to use a specific amount of drugs or alcohol in order to feel “well” we need to know. We ask these questions to help us determine if you need medical treatment outside from our standard levels of care here at our recovery center.
Mental Health Questions
We’ll ask questions about your mental health to help us determine whether you have immediate needs for your emotional wellbeing. This may include asking if you are suicidal, have been suicidal in the past, or have had suicidal thoughts recently. We’ll also ask whether you have a past history of violence, psychosis, or other mental health conditions that may impact your recovery.
Past Treatment Questions
Have you been treated for substance abuse in the past? We’re going to ask you questions about whether you have been to treatment before and if so, where you went, and when. It’s okay if you cannot remember the exact dates, but please do your best to help us see whether this has been an ongoing problem for you as it will help us to paint the picture that you need more help.
We will also ask you what forms of treatment you participated in. If it helped. If you liked it. Why you stopped. All of these questions will help us to determine an appropriate level of care for you that you will be most likely to succeed in.
Living Situation Questions
We’ll ask questions to help us determine who you live with and whether your living situation is safe for your recovery or if it may be contributing to your addiction to drugs or alcohol. We might ask you where you live. We may also ask how your relationship is with your partner, spouse, roommate or whomever you live with. This helps us to see early on where there is a need for family treatment or involvement of others in your recovery.
Transportation Questions
We’ll ask you if you have a way to treatment or if you’ll need a ride. We might also ask questions about your transportation to help us determine if the outpatient treatment might be appropriate for you or if a recommendation for inpatient rehabilitation is important.
Dependent Questions
Do you have children that depend on you for their care? We’re going to ask questions about your family and responsibilities at home to help us determine whether inpatient treatment is appropriate or not as well as to determine whether your current substance abuse is likely to be impacting the lives of others – not to get you in trouble, but to help us better understand how we can help you to help your family.
Criminal Justice Questions
Although St. John’s Recovery Place does not participate in a court-ordered treatment program, we might ask you questions about your criminal involvement or outstanding legal issues to best provide you with a recommendation for treatment and care. If you’re wondering whether treatment can get you out of legal trouble, please contact your attorney.