It is very common at emergency rooms and hospitals around the United States for patients to be admitted for drug-use related diseases. Endocarditis, and other infections from intravenous drug use, are the largest group of these types of diseases from opioid use, with various diseases being common for those with alcohol use disorder. It will be surprising for many to learn that even when patients are put into long term care and rehabilitation for these substance use disorder related diseases, they are not often offered psychosocial interventions for the underlying cause of the disease, which is substance use disorder or addiction.
Speaking from my own experience being around the addiction treatment world, we often see patients eager to finally treat their own severe substance use disorder and addiction problems, only to be sidetracked by the severe secondary consequences of long-term use. Including liver disease from alcoholism, and endocarditis from opioid use disorder with IV needle use. The best drug and alcohol rehabs in Florida, including Florida Springs Wellness and Recovery Center in Panama City, are adept at treating substance use disorder, but patients who present with life-threatening side effects from years of drug or alcohol use are often stunted in their attempts to begin the recovery process. The Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings presents findings from a study that offered patients with drug-use related endocarditis a chance to engage with group therapy for drug and alcohol addiction alongside their normal treatment regimens of antibiotics to fight infections. The results give reason for hope that group therapy for substance use disorder may become the standard of care in cases like these. Please remember, that if you have come to our site for help with your own addiction issues, the best drug and alcohol rehab in Florida is Florida Springs in Panama City, and our experts can be reached at the number on the top of this page.
Psychosocial Interventions for Endocarditis
In my opinion integrated and comprehensive treatment of all aspects of addiction disease should be the standard for patients with drug-related endocarditis. The aforementioned study showed positive results from once-per-week group counseling sessions, so we could imagine even better results in the future if the standard inpatient drug and alcohol rehab approach was combined with regular medical treatment and rehabilitation for the physical effects of endocarditis.
100% of patients in the study showed an increase of relevant knowledge about their own disease and about treatment and recovery. People who work around substance use disorder treatment will know that lack of knowledge about addiction is correlated with difficulty staying sober. An across-the-board increase in relevant knowledge is a huge victory from a treatment perspective. 100% of patients in the study were also able to develop a follow-up plan for group and individual treatment to begin after their recovery from endocarditis. This seems to be a hugely encouraging outcome as well, but we would obviously need to see follow through on these plans from the same patient group. In 81.2% of cases the researchers saw just that, as 81.2% of patients showed up to their first outpatient appointment.
On this blog we often talk about patients “buying in” and being invested in their own recoveries. In 12-step groups, experienced members will speak to the value of “getting sober for oneself, and not for someone else.” This is the same basic concept as patients “buying in”. If a patient is only in treatment to appease a family member, the ultimate outcome of treatment and the ability of that patient to stay sober is severely limited. Patients are always encouraged to seek recovery for themselves first, as the recovery journey is an individual journey of self-discovery, acknowledgment, learning, and taking action for one’s own health and future. This is a subject we could go into more detail about, but it is enough for today to say that these patients showing up for outpatient services at such a high frequency is a likely sign that many will have success. 1-month, 3-month, and 6-month treatment retention rates were also well above the historical levels according to the researchers. This shows that just a small amount of investment in group recovery activities can have huge, life-changing effects for patients facing a battle with endocarditis and other drug-use related diseases.
If you or a loved one has found this blog while researching the best drug and alcohol rehabs, please call us today for more information. Florida Springs provides both inpatient and outpatient drug and alcohol rehab to patients from our Panama City, Florida facility.
By T.A. Cannon (Contact me at TACannonWriting@gmail.com)
References
“Bridging the Gap: Can Group Interventions Assist Addiction Consult Services in Providing Integrated, Comprehensive Healthcare for Patients Hospitalized for Opioid-Related Infections?”, By Tess M. Kilwein; Sharnay Brown; Michelle Gaffaney and Jessica Farrar. Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings is a copyright of Springer, 2021. All Rights Reserved.
