Oxford Houses offer both recovery benefits and cost savings Recovery Research Institute

One of the strongest predictors of criminal recidivism is substance use (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2005). Of those with substance use addictions/dependence, only about 10% even reach any type of substance abuse treatment. This suggests a large need for creative new types of screening methods to identify patients in need of treatment. Almost all medical problems are first identified by primary care and referred https://ecosoberhouse.com/ to specialists, but this is not the case with substance abuse disorders, where most individuals first approach specialist substance abuse treatment settings. The Office of National Drug Control Policy is currently considering recommending that primary care settings should identify people with substance abusers in primary care settings in order to refer more patients to detoxification and treatment.

Prior to entering Oxford House, participants were concerned that House policies would be similar to those of half-way houses they had experienced (i.e., too restrictive). A study published in the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment found sober living home residents experienced improvements in arrest rates, alcohol and drug use rates, and employment rates. The authors found evidence that 12-step program attendance and social support systems were key components of recovery for residents.

Oxford House Recovery Homes: Characteristics and Effectiveness

Some homes are highly structured, with strict schedules and consistent eating and meeting times. An average day at a sober living home usually includes group breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Most homes have household meetings nightly, and residents often attend treatment, support group meetings or other wellness activities together. Some sober living homes have exercise equipment, fitness areas, recreational space, pools and cookout areas.

Finally, just among Oxford House participants, they tested if individuals who stayed in the recovery residence for 6 or more months had better outcomes. Of note, members were able to stay or leave the residence voluntarily – 95% moved out of their respective Oxford Houses at some point over the 2-year study, for example. For those assigned to usual continuing care, case managers at the treatment center referred individuals to different combinations of outpatient treatment, mutual-help, and other community resources. The majority of usual care participants lived in their own home, or the home of a spouse/partner, relative, or a friend (67%).

We Support

Sober living homes are an effective resource for individuals who have completed treatment and are ready to begin their lives in recovery. They provide a balance of supervision and independence that allows people to transition back to work, school and daily life. A variety of other studies have also found that sober living homes appear to be an effective component of the recovery process.

We worked with the needs of diverse groups, including ex-offenders, minority groups including Native Americans, and women and women with children. Our efforts involved a commitment to collaborative research with a grass-roots organization, assessing change at multiple levels with a multidisciplinary team of economists, biostatisticians, social, developmental, clinical and community psychologists. There were only seventeen American Indian participants in our national NIDA study (Kidney, Alvarez, Jason, Ferrari, what is an oxford house & Minich, 2009). Nevertheless, American Indians were no more likely to report more severe substance use, psychological problems, criminal histories, or lower incomes than other groups. In addition, American Indians were more likely to report being on parole or probation and being referred for aftercare by the legal system. Moreover, American Indians reported greater disharmony within their recovery residences than Caucasians, but there were no significant ethnic differences in length of stay in Oxford House.

Choosing a Sober Living Home

Regarding marital status, 45% had been never married, 18% were separated, 33% were divorced, and only 4% were married. Fifty-three percent of residents reported prior homelessness for an average time of 6 months. Recovery residences are less expensive than living at a rehabilitation facility or detox center because fewer services are offered. But many sober homes require residents to attend support group meetings or participate in 12-step programs or outpatient treatment, which may be an additional cost for residents to consider. Halfway houses are technically sober living environments, but there are many differences between halfway houses for people transitioning out of incarceration and sober homes for people in recovery from addiction. Clearly, it is important to improve the quality of the data for outcomes research with residential substance abuse treatment.

This was even true despite greater average cost per each participant over 2 years ($3200 more). All told, the net benefit of being assigned to the Oxford House condition versus usual care was $29,000 per person during the 2-year study. Limited research, however, is available regarding how Oxford House settings compare to other treatments. Using cross sectional data, Ferrari, Jason, Davis, Olson, and Alvarez (2004) compared the operational policies of 55 Oxford Houses to those of 14 Therapeutic Communities (TCs).