Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #117430

Sherri L. Green, PhD, Governor’s Institute on Alcohol and Substance Abuse, P.O Box 13374, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, (919)220-7498, sgreennc@mindspring.com

The focus of this study is evaluation of gender specific substance abuse treatment services in North Carolina within the framework of anti-discriminatory practice theory. Anti-discriminatory practice includes self-evaluation of implementation of an empowerment model of care, culturally competent practice principles and equitability of treatment effectiveness across client groups. Qualitative data from annual reports provided contextual data and revealed that programs in the North Carolina Perinatal and Maternal Substance Abuse Initiative use staff training and supervision, open dialogue on issues of race and ethnicity, facilitating access to religious and cultural social events for clients in residential care, setting up treatment sites in predominately minority neighborhoods and outreach efforts to minority populations to address the knowledge, skills and attitudes of staff necessary for provision of culturally competent care.Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling were used in group invariant testing and longitudinal analysis to test a measurement model, the protective effect of pregnancy, and client benefit from treatment. Associations of measured indicators and latent constructs were similar for Non Hispanic Black and Non Hispanic White women, but differences on the influence of psychiatric risk were noted. Pregnancy had a protective effect on substance use for both groups. The benefits of treatment, when controlling for covariates, were found to be the same for both groups. Findings were consistent with culturally competent care but not a direct measure.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participants will be able to

• Identify barriers to culturally competent substance abuse treatment;
• Discuss issues central to evaluation of cultural competency in gender specific treatment programs;
• Describe how North Carolina women’s substance abuse programs operationalize culturally competent treatment;
• Evaluate the fit of data to a structural equation model designed to test group invariance for benefit of treatment;
• Evaluate if Non Hispanic Black and Non Hispanic White women benefit equally from women’s treatment services in North Carolina;
• Discuss the protective effects of pregnancy on client outcomes for women in substance abuse treatment.

Keywords: Women, Cultural Competency

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.