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RIDEAUWOOD ADDICTION AND FAMILY
SERVICES SCHOOL BASED PROGRAMS
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| For the past fourteen (14) years, Rideauwood has worked in partnership with high schools in the Ottawa-Carleton Boards of Education delivering a comprehensive training education and counselling service to students with issues related to substance abuse. During these developmental years, Rideauwood and the schools have seen heartening results with students at risk, with students abusing or dependent on substances and with students in recovery. | |
| The full Rideauwood School Based Program includes both group and individual counselling. Groups are co-lead where possible by a Rideauwood counsellor and school personnel. Three distinct groups are provided for three distinct types of needs. | |
| 1. The High Risk Group | |
| The goal of this group is to assist students who are at high risk for developing substance problems due to a variety of factors. These students are often using substances as a way of coping. They are seen once a week in group and individual sessions. A portion of these teens are referred on from the High Risk group to Motivational or Recovery groups to deal with chemical abuse issues. | |
| 2. The Insight/Motivational Group | |
| The goal of this group is to educate and motivate students who have substantial problems in and out of school and are using alcohol / drugs very frequently often in large amounts. It is designed to encourage self-assessment and help them make positive changes based on what they have learned about themselves, about substance abuse, chemical dependency and about their own life problems. | |
| As a result of attendance in this group, students have often decided to address their substance abuse with the assistance of school based Recovery Groups and individual counselling in the school. This trend has reinforced the value of having the availability of both a Motivation Group and a Recovery Group within a given school setting. | |
| 3. The Recovery Group | |
| This group is for students who are actively working on extensive substance abuse problems with a goal to stop using. The challenge for students to remain abstinent and to be able to deal with recovery in difficult situations is an ongoing process, often entailing more than one year in these groups. Individual counselling has proven to be crucial in the first 12 to 24 months of recovery. | |
| 4. Assessment and Referral in the School | |
| The Rideauwood counsellor assesses the later stage chemically dependent teen and motivates and assists the teen in accessing the appropriate treatment facility, maintains contact with the facility during treatment and facilitates the teens reentry to school and the Recovery group. Work is done with parents, where possible, in advance of these assessments. Often the parents are referred to the the P.E.A.K. Program at the Rideauwood website. | |
| P.E.A.K. is a six (6) week educational counselling program for parents with teens who have a substance abuse problem. It is held five times a year and is available by calling Rideauwood Addiction and Family Services at 724-4881 and asking for the Intake Counsellor. P.E.A.K. is the introduction to the ongoing weekly counselling group for parents. For more details, please click here | |
| Family involvement is crucial to the recovery process both at the outset and on an ongoing basis. | |
| Rideauwood counsellors are currently in thirteen (13) schools in the Ottawa and Carleton District School Board. Elizabeth Wynwood, Frederick Banting Alternate Program, Rideau High School, Bell High School, Woodroffe High School, St. Pius X, South Carleton High School, West Carleton, Sir Guy Carleton, J.S. Woodsworth Laurentian Ridgemont and St. Mary's Alternate. The school teams are comprised of: vice-principals, guidance counsellors, school social workers, S.A.P. teachers, other community resources and the Rideauwood counsellor. | |
| Each year, 500 - 550 teens and 80-90 parents are assisted in the thirteen (13) schools. It is most encouraging to see the visible change in attitude toward drugs and alcohol in students and staff within these schools. Schools report significant improvement in behaviour, grades, attendance and retention. Over the past five years, an increasing number of teens are choosing to transfer to schools with support programs in place. | |
| For some teens, a combination of a School Based Program as well as the agency based outpatient program at Rideauwood (with a total of five to six contacts weekly, both in group and individual counselling) is needed for that teen to maintain the necessary treatment support. | |
| Rideauwood's agency based outpatient Teen Program has teen groups (13-17 year olds) and a young adult group (18-23 year olds). The program includes group, individual and recreational counselling weekly. Teens usually stay in program for 12-18 months. Groups and individual sessions are held after school. The agency program also provides individual motivational counselling for teens and young adults. | |
| If you wish more information regarding the Rideauwood School Based Programs, please contact: | |
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Email: rideauwood@rideauwood.org
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