Understanding the Community Reinforcement Approach and Family Training (CRAFT)

Community Reinforcement Approach (CRAFT). Sounds complicated? No! It is an evidenced based approach that can make all the difference in applying community reinforcement and structured family methods.

Understanding the Community Reinforcement Approach and Family Training (CRAFT) takes a little bit of time and effort. It is seeded in research and is a treatment plan for all of the family: adult children, siblings, partners and spouses. However, it doesn’t stop there as it extends to friends of those seeking treatment as well.

CRAFT incorporates community reinforcement to engage family in the process. This approach also includes training for the entire family.

If you need 24 hour Rehab Advice, a Free Rehab Referral Service or simply want Free Clinician Drug Advice : Call. Our Clinicians provide free, confidential and impartial advice to all.

Community Reinforcement Approach (CRAFT)

What does the Community Reinforcement Approach (CRAFT) consist of?

Within this model there are some abbreviations to master:

• Concerned Significant Others (CSOs): These are those members of the family who are supporting the person in need of treatment.
• Identified Patients (IP’s): Those who are in need of help

The essential aim of CRAFT is to support CSO’s who don’t know where to turn for help for the IP and is centered around the concept that family members can be a powerful tool to help the IP understand that they need help. The Community Reinforcement Approach within the framework empowers families rather than coercing or pressuring but focuses on being impartial, empathetic, and boundaried. Training for families is an integral component of this approach, embodying principles of CRAFT.

Community Reinforcement Approach (CRAFT)

At its core, CRAFT is facilitated by peers and uses a skills-based program to help those who have someone in their life caught up in the madness of addiction. Community Reinforcement Approach emphasizes improving coping skills for those supporting individuals with addiction.

It provides a way of viewing how the person’s addiction has affected their lives, as well as the person they are supporting. The training for families included in this reinforced strategy also helps to address the user’s resistance to engage in treatment.

If you need 24 hour Rehab Advice, a Free Rehab Referral Service or simply want Free Clinician Drug Advice : Call. Our Clinicians provide free, confidential and impartial advice to all.

While CRAFT is there to try and engage the user in treatment it does not use a confrontational approach; rather it employs evidence-based principles to reduce the person’s drug use and encourage them to seek a way out of dependency through treatment.

Community Reinforcement Approach combined with family training delivers psychological tools and formulas used at home to refine interactions with those struggling with addiction; these skills will become a lifeline as you work through the process of getting the person to accept help.

As with all things in life, CRAFT is not a quick fix, rather it should be viewed as a model of approach that can be of significant use to both the person struggling as well as those supporting them.

You’ll find that Community Reinforcement Approach and Family Training will provide you with a structured plan of action as well as helping you see things in a more positive light. This is why the community reinforcement approach is recommended to many.

Community Reinforcement Approach (CRAFT)

The system was designed at the University of New Mexico by Drs Meyers and Smith and has been evaluated for its effectiveness for nearly four decades. Studies indicate that the Community Reinforcement Approach, along with family training, can help over 7 out of 10 people who need addiction treatment.

If you need 24 hour Rehab Advice, a Free Rehab Referral Service or simply want Free Clinician Drug Advice : Call. Our Clinicians provide free, confidential and impartial advice to all.

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