Residential drug rehab for parents is a problem. It is not the actual program but rather the deficient number of facilities available. There are periods when staff members at these residential houses must reject patients based on the lack of space available—not on need. The need is often great. In some areas, the number of facilities has decreased significantly. However, the actual number of people who need those organizations to recover from substance abuse addiction has increased recently. It is a problem that ebbs and flows. Drug specialists and experts suspect the cause of the increase originates from disorganization. There should be more specific information circulating about how to get into treatment, especially in areas where addiction and drugs are still quite taboo.
The other part of the problem stems from how complicated the process can be. The act of entering rehab can imply— and often does—many hours of red tape and paperwork, and those seeking and requiring drug rehab often do not have that long to wait. When there are few potential patients, the waiting period is not too exacerbated, but when there are many patients, it can be difficult to help them. Besides capacity affecting who and who does not get in for treatment, a residential rehab staff must consider what a substance abuser needs. Each abuser is different and with different problems: tailoring the care required can be an arduous undertaking that clogs up the system further. There are many programs available to people with such problems, but again, whether or not the information is out there about how to enter them is another question. A person might only need outpatient treatment and not residential rehab, but without the proper information in circulation, it increases the wait time for either kind of therapy.
People who work within the system often have harsh criticism about what drives the success of a residential home. Though many people can succeed in an outpatient treatment program, there are those who do need the residential. The person should determine the kind of treatment he or she requires, and not alleged financial prudence, according to drug treatment specialists.
Other issues complicate the matter of residential drug treatment. For instance, there are many adult abusers with children dependent on them. Where do the children go if a parent needs to stay in a residential drug facility? Though there are locations that allow the children to live within the treatment facility—separate from the where different parts of the actual treatment occur, but still within the same area. However, these are few and far between. When there are progressive facilities such as these available, parents who are also abusers often deny themselves treatment in order to stay with their children, an act that has dangerous implications. Children who have substance abusers for parents are much likely to become substance abusers themselves. The problem then creates a whole new generation of people who need residential facilities.