Therapeutic community retention among Alaska natives

FRANÇAIS :
La communauté thérapeutique d'Anchorage (Alaska), Akeela House, a incorporé, dans son traitement des toxicomanes, des moyens de guérison traditionnels des indiens d'Alaska et des activités visant à renforcer l'identité culturelle de ces indiens. Le critère principal de réussite est la durée du traitement. Avant ce changement, les indiens avaient davantage tendance à écourter leur cure que les blancs et les noirs suivant le même traitement. Après, chacun des groupes ethniques a amélioré sa durée de séjour. Devant l'importance du fait culturel que révèlent ces résultats, Akeela House a élaboré des programmes culturels adaptés aux afro-américains et aux blancs
ENGLISH :
The purpose of the study was to determine whether a change in the treatment program at Akeela House Incorporated, a therapeutic community in Anchorage, Alaska, significantly increased the time in treatment for Alaska Native residents. The change in treatment involved implementation of culturally sensitive approaches that incorporated and reinforced Native lifestyles. Data were obtained from the Alaska Management Information System on all treatment admissions from January 1988 to January 1995. Prior to implementation, Alaska Native residents had significantly shorter times in treatment than Black or White residents. After implementation of the change in the treatment program, Alaska Native residents' times in treatment were no longer significantly different from those of Black or White residents, and all three ethnic groups had significantly longer times in treatment than before the intervention.(From authors' abstract)