CTAC has sponsored the creation of the nation's first
digital, virtually real-time, Drug Evaluation Network
System (DENS), allowing for the tracking of drugrelated
problems and drug use patterns across the
country. The benefits of this system include earlier
intervention in problem areas, more focused treatment
care plans, and targeting of prevention efforts. DENS
was conceived by two of the most respected authorities
in substance abuse treatment, outcomes, and prevention:
Columbia University Prof. Herb Kleber, M.D.,
and University of Pennsylvania Prof. A. Thomas
McLellan, Ph.D.
Piloted for the past 3 years in 40 drug treatment programs
and drug courts in six cities, DENS has proved
itself and expanded. Under the operational guidance of
Dr. Deni Carise of the Treatment Research Institute,
DENS is now collecting information from the U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs' 200 drug and alcohol
treatment programs as well as the statewide treatment
system in New Jersey, and the Delaware Drug Courts. A
follow-up study is underway with DENS in 300 drug treatment
centers in Los Angeles. Additionally, another ONDCPsponsored
study, the RAMONA project, is being built into
DENS to provide an estimate of the number of hardcore
drug users in the U.S. Integrating RAMONA into DENS
should produce more precise results than previous efforts,
which did not have the immediate reach and rapid
response of RAMONA.
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| Detail from DENS terminal screen |
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DENS begins with an extensive profile of individuals entering
treatment at a participating program, allowing comparisons
of treatment efficacy while completely shielding each
patient's privacy. In the future, the system will additionally
track services received as well as treatment outcomes, providing
solid, scientific measures of performance. This, in
turn, is expected to create a wide range of new knowledgebased
opportunities for treatment professionals and other
decision makers. Today, long before it was expected, some
treatment centers
are using DENS
information and
software to streamline
their new
patient evaluation
and the result is
much faster identification
of patient
needs. "We are saving
weeks if not
months and that
means patients get
much more out of
their time in the program
than they would
have without the
DENS input into our
process," one treatment
center told us.
