Standards on Substance Abuse: Standard XV. Treatment directory

Standard XV

To assist in the identification of treatment resources, the Commissioner of Probation, in consultation with the Department of Public Health, should maintain an updated directory of treatment providers.⁽⁸⁾ The directory should include each treatment provider's phone number, address, contact person and title, eligibility requirements, accepted payment methods, hours of operation, process of referral, treatment method, and procedures with respect to relapse. The directory should include services for a diverse population.

Commentary

The purpose of the directory is to provide the courts with information facilitating access to comprehensive and current drug and alcohol treatment resources and services available in each community in Massachusetts. Only treatment providers which satisfy the criteria promulgated under Standard XIV should be included in the directory.

The directory should be divided into regions and the communities within each region. Probation departments in each region should compile the information on resources and services in the communities within the region. The Office of the Commissioner of Probation should update the directory at least annually. If a provider is not in compliance with the criteria established by the probation department under Standard XIV, the provider should be removed from the directory. The Office of the Commissioner of Probation may combine the directory of community treatment providers with the directory of institutional treatment programs recommended in the Commentary to Standard X.

Judges should become familiar with the resources included in the directory. Whenever possible, judges and probation officers are encouraged to make site visits to treatment providers to gain a better understanding of available treatment services and to foster stronger community collaboration between the various courts and their treatment providers.

8. Such a directory is called for by Standards 10:01, 10:02, and 10:03, of the Commissioner of Probation's Standards for Supervision for Probation Offices of the Superior Court Department, District Court Department, Boston Municipal Court Department and the Juvenile Court Department.