LSF Health Systems is committed to promoting the implementation of Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) with the goal of increasing positive consumer outcomes. There are numerous merits to implementing EBPs. Utilizing an EBP increases the likelihood that the program will work as intended and that the public good will be enhanced. Organizations can select from the growing number of EBPs, which are known to be effective and often offer program materials and technical assistance. SAMHSA’s National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP) and Blueprints for Healthy Youth Development are two registries intended to provide valid, reliable, and timely information for audiences interested in identifying and/or implementing evidence-based interventions. LSF Health Systems encourages the implementation of EBPs, monitors network service providers on the utilization of EBPs and conducts trainings to support EBP utilization. We are proud of the EBPs being offered within our system of care and encourage all providers to increase utilization of EBPs. Below is a listing of EBPs currently provided to consumers within our Coordinated System of Care.
NREPP Recognized Evidence-Based Programs and PracticesEBP Name / EBP Description
Active Parenting / Video-based education program targeted to parents of 2- to 12-year-olds who want to improve their parenting skills.
Adolescent Community Reinforcement Approach (A-CRA) / Outpatient program for youths and young adults between the ages of 12 and 24 who have substance use and co-occurring mental health disorders
Alcohol Literacy Challenge / Brief classroom-based program designed to alter alcohol expectancies and reduce the quantity and frequency of alcohol use among high school and college students.
Assertive Community Treatment (FACT Team) / A comprehensive, community-based treatment, service delivery model provided to people who have been diagnosed with a severe and persistent mental illness (i.e. schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, or bi-polar disorder).
Brief Strategic Family Therapy / Family therapy designed to (1) prevent, reduce, and/or treat adolescent behavior problems such as drug use, conduct problems, delinquency, sexually risky behavior, aggressive/violent behavior, and association with antisocial peers; (2) improve prosocial behaviors such as school attendance and performance; and (3) improve family functioning, including effective parental leadership and management, positive parenting, and parental involvement with the child and his or her peers and school.
Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP) / Treatment for trauma-exposed children aged 0-5. Focus on the parent-child relationship as the primary target of intervention
Creating Lasting Family Connections / Creating Lasting Family Connections (CLFC) is a family-focused program that aims to increase parenting skills and family-relationship skills to build the resiliency of youths aged 9 to 17 years, and to reduce the frequency of their alcohol and other drug (AOD) use. CLFC is designed to be implemented through community systems such as churches, schools, recreation centers, and court-referred settings.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy / Short-term, goal-oriented psychotherapy treatment that takes a hands-on, practical approach to problem-solving.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy / Cognitive-behavioral treatment approach with two key characteristics: a behavioral, problem-solving focus blended with acceptance-based strategies, and an emphasis on dialectical processes. "Dialectical" refers to the issues involved in treating patients with multiple disorders and to the type of thought processes and behavioral styles used in the treatment strategies.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) / One-on-one form of psychotherapy that is designed to reduce trauma-related stress, anxiety, and depression symptoms associated with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and to improve overall mental health functioning.
Guiding Good Choices / Drug use prevention program that provides parents of children in grades 4 through 8 (9 to 14 years old) with the knowledge and skills needed to guide their children through early adolescence.
Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Depressed Adolescents (IPT-A) / Designed for use with young people aged about 12-18 years who have an acute onset major depression.
Life Skills Training / LifeSkills Training (LST) is a school-based program that aims to prevent alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use and violence by targeting the major social and psychological factors that promote the initiation of substance use and other risky behaviors. LST is based on both the social influence and competence enhancement models of prevention. Consistent with this theoretical framework, LST addresses multiple risk and protective factors and teaches personal and social skills that build resilience and help youth navigate developmental tasks, including the skills necessary to understand and resist prodrug influences. LST is designed to provide information relevant to the important life transitions that adolescents and young teens face, using culturally sensitive and developmentally and age-appropriate language and content. Facilitated discussion, structured small group activities, and role-playing scenarios are used to stimulate participation and promote the acquisition of skills. Separate LST programs are offered for elementary school (grades 3-6), middle school (grades 6-9), and high school (grades 9-12)
Living in Balance / Designed as a practical, instructional guide for conducting group-oriented treatment sessions for persons who abuse or are addicted to drugs.
Matrix Model / An intensive outpatient treatment approach for stimulant abuse and dependence that was developed through 20 years of experience in real-world treatment settings.
Mental Health First Aid/ Youth Mental Health First Aid / An adult public education program designed to improve participants' knowledge and modify their attitudes and perceptions about mental health and related issues, including how to respond to individuals who are experiencing one or more acute mental health crises (i.e., suicidal thoughts and/or behavior, acute stress reaction, panic attacks, and/or acute psychotic behavior) or are in the early stages of one or more chronic mental health problems.
Motivational Enhancement Therapy (MET) / Counseling approach that helps individuals resolve their ambivalence about engaging in treatment and stopping their drug use.
Motivational Interviewing (MI) / Motivational interviewing provides strategic skills touse when talking about behavior change.
Nurturing Parent / The Nurturing Parenting Programs (NPP) are family-based programs for the prevention and treatment of child abuse and neglect. The programs were developed to help families who have been identified by child welfare agencies for past child abuse and neglect or who are at high risk for child abuse and neglect. The goals of NPP are to:
- Increase parents' sense of self-worth, personal empowerment, empathy, bonding, and attachment.
- Increase the use of alternative strategies to harsh and abusive disciplinary practices.
- Increase parents' knowledge of age-appropriate developmental expectations.
- Reduce abuse and neglect rates.
Parenting Inside Out / 12-week voluntary parent management training program for incarcerated parents.
Prize Incentives Contingency Management for Substance Abuse / A variation of contingency management, or reinforcement, that awards prizes for abstinence and treatment compliance, such as group attendance and healthy behaviors. It is based on a construct central to behavioral psychology known as operant conditioning, or the use of consequences to modify the occurrence and form of behavior.
Positive Action / Positive Action is an integrated and comprehensive curriculum-based program that is designed to improve academic achievement; school attendance; and problem behaviors such as substance use, violence, suspensions, disruptive behaviors, dropping out, and sexual behavior. It is also designed to improve parent–child bonding, family cohesion, and family conflict. Its concepts are universal and effective for all populations and socioeconomic levels and ages. All materials are based on the same unifying broad concept (one feels good about oneself when taking positive actions, and there is a positive way to do everything) with six explanatory subconcepts (positive actions for the physical, intellectual, social, and emotional areas) that elaborate on the overall theme.
PRIME for Life / PRIME For Life (PFL) is a motivational intervention used in group settings to prevent alcohol and drug problems or provide early intervention. PFL has been used primarily among court-referred impaired driving offenders, as in the two studies reviewed for this summary. It also has been adapted for use with military personnel, college students, middle and high school students, and parents. Different versions of the program, ranging from 4.5 to 20 hours in duration, and optional activities are available to guide use with various populations.
Project SUCCESS / Designed to prevent and reduce substance use among students 12 to 18 years of age. The program was originally developed for students attending alternative high schools who are at high risk for substance use and abuse due to poor academic performance, truancy, discipline problems, negative attitudes toward school, and parental substance abuse. In recent years, Project SUCCESS has been used in regular middle and high schools for a broader range of high-risk students.
Ripple Effects / Ripple Effects Whole Spectrum Intervention System (Ripple Effects) is an interactive, software-based adaptive intervention for students that is designed to enhance social-emotional competencies and ultimately improve outcomes related to school achievement and failure, delinquency, substance abuse, and mental health. Two versions of the software are available: Ripple Effects for Kids (grades 2-5) and Ripple Effects for Teens (grades 6-10). The software presents students with peer-narrated tutorials that address social-emotional competencies (e.g., self-understanding, empathy, impulse control, emotional regulation, assertiveness, decisionmaking, connection to community), present science-based information about group-level risk factors, and give each student personalized guidance to address risk and protective factors specific to the student's environment and personal goals.
QPR Gatekeeper Training For Suicide Prevention / Brief educational program designed to teach "gatekeepers"--those who are strategically positioned to recognize and refer someone at risk of suicide (e.g., parents, friends, neighbors, teachers, coaches, caseworkers, police officers)--the warning signs of a suicide crisis and how to respond.
Screening and Brief Intervention and Referral for Treatment (SBIRT) / A comprehensive, integrated, public health approach for early identification and interventionwith patients whose patterns of alcohol and/or drug use put their health at risk.
Second Step / Second Step–Elementary is a universal, classroom-based program for children in kindergarten through fifth grade, which is designed to increase school success and decrease problem behaviors by promoting social–emotional competence and self-regulation. The Second Step program consists of a skills-focused, social–emotional learning (SEL) curriculum that emphasizes skills that strengthen students’ ability to learn, have empathy, manage emotions, and solve problems. The Second Step Middle School program is a universal, classroom-based intervention for children in grades six through eight, which is designed to increase school success and decrease problem behaviors by promoting social–emotional competence. The Second Step program consists of a skills-focused, social–emotional learning (SEL) curriculum that emphasizes directly teaching students how to strengthen their ability to learn, have empathy, manage emotions, and solve problems.
Seeking Safety / Present-focused coping skills model for clients with a history of trauma and/or substance abuse.
Strengthening Families Program / A family skills training program designed to increase resilience and reduce risk factors for behavioral, emotional, academic, and social problems in children 3-16 years old.
Strengthening Families Program: For Parents and Youth 10-14 / For Parents and Youth 10-14 (SFP 10-14) is a family skills training intervention designed to enhance school success and reduce youth substance use and aggression among 10- to 14-year-olds.
Structured Psychotherapy for Adolescents Responding to Chronic Stress (SPARCS) / Group intervention that was specifically designed to address the needs of chronically traumatized adolescents who may still be living with ongoing stress and are experiencing problems in several areas of functioning.
STEP-Systematic Training for Effective Parenting / Systematic Training for Effective Parenting (STEP) is a program that provides skills training for parents dealing with frequently encountered challenges with their children that often result from authoritarian parenting styles. Although STEP was designed for the use with parents facing typical parenting challenges, this program is specifically for parents who are at high risk for parenting difficulties such as maltreatment, child abuse, and neglect. Rooted in Adlerian psychology, STEP promotes a more participatory family structure by fostering responsibility, independence, and competence in children; improving communication between parents and children; and helping children learn from the natural and logical consequences of their own choices.
STEP is presented in a group format, with optimal group sizes ranging from 6 to 14 parents. The program is typically taught in seven weekly, 1.5-hour study groups facilitated by a counselor, social worker, or individual who has participated in a STEP workshop
Too Good for Drugs / School-based prevention program for kindergarten through 12th grade that builds on students' resiliency by teaching them how to be socially competent and autonomous problem solvers.
Too Good for Violence / School-based violence prevention and character education program for students in kindergarten through 12th grade.
Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) / A conjoint child and parent psychotherapy approach for children and adolescents who are experiencing significant emotional and behavioral difficulties related to traumatic life events.
Twelve Step Facilitation Therapy (TSF) / Active engagement strategy designed to increase the likelihood of a substance abuser becoming affiliated with and actively involved in 12-step self-help groups, thereby promoting abstinence.