Services Research Outcomes Study: Overview of Drug Treatment Population and Outcomes

This study examined a representative sample of individuals discharged from drug user treatment in the United States in the 12 months before September 1990, and compared self-reports of behavior 5 years before and 5 years after treatment. Self-reports about recent drug use were compared with urine samples, and the agreement between self-report and drug test results was high. Key findings included that the number of alcohol and drug users declined markedly; criminal behavior fell by one third; and homelessness, drug injection, and suicide attempts decreased by more than one third. (25 refs)