Treatment plans are the driver behind all evidence-based substance abuse intervention. 

Without a treatment plan, there is no treatment road map, no insurance documentation, no benchmarking and no ability to coordinate care between clinical teams.

Treatment without a treatment plan simply doesn’t work. 

But what about patient-centered treatment plans? 

The word “patient centered” is used quite a bit in the behavioral health space, but what does it mean exactly? And how do clinicians make treatment plans that qualify as “patient centered?” Aren’t all treatment plans about the patient, and, therefore, patient centered?

While you’d think that was the case, the truth is, not all treatment plans for substance abuse are patient centered. 

Today, let’s look at what goes into making treatment plans for substance abuse as well as what it takes to create a treatment plan that is truly patient centered. 

There are Four Steps to Any Treatment Plan for Substance Abuse 

There are four parts to any substance abuse treatment plan, regardless of what EHR or program you are using to create your treatment plan. 

Those four steps are: 

• Identifying problems 

• Creating goals 

• Naming objectives 

• Defining clinical interventions 

Treatment Plan Step #1: Identifying problems 

Identifying problems simply means creating a problem statement regarding the patient’s presenting issues and backing that problem statement up with evidence from assessments like a biopsychosocial and/or other clinical measures.

For example, you may state the patient presents with Alcohol Use Disorder based on biopsychosocial observations and also presents with moderate depression based on the patient’s PHQ-9 score. In this case, AUD and and moderate depression are the key problems identified. 

Treatment Plan Step #2: Creating Goals 

Creating goals is similarly straightforward. Goals describe the desired outcome of treatment. For example, the patient may state that they want to achieve sobriety from alcohol and improve the self-esteem issues they feel are driving their depression. These are goals. 

Treatment Plan Step #3: Naming Objectives 

Objectives describe what the patient will do in treatment to reach their goals. Objectives are the nuts and bolts of treatment - the who, what, where and how of the patient’s journey. For example, one of our patient’s treatment objectives might be for the patient to attend daily group counseling sessions. 

Treatment Plan Step #4: Defining Interventions 

Interventions describe what you - the clinician - will do as part of the treatment plan. For our example, the clinician might plan to challenge the patient to discuss their low self-esteem concerns in a group counseling session and provide accountability after the session to the patient.

Substance Abuse Treatment Plans Should Not Simply Be About Your Patient 

While treatment plans are a necessary part of documentation for the purposes of insurance claims and clinical planning and coordination, they can also be a powerful healing tool when they are truly patient centered. 

Treatment plans should not simply be about your patient. 

Too many clinicians race through treatment planning, using cut-and-paste boilerplate language and entombing it into a patient’s chart, never to be seen again. This is a missed opportunity. 

Here’s How to Ensure That Your 4-Step Substance Abuse Treatment Plan is Patient-Centered 

Treatment plans are a great place to start building a patient-centered relationship with your client. Don’t just involve them in treatment planning, put them in the driver’s seat. Make your patients name their goals in their own words and write those down. Brainstorm objectives with your patient and incorporate their ideas. Teach patients about how to create SMART goals and practice creating them as you complete the treatment plan together. 

A patient-centered treatment plan should be a document that your patient feels a good deal of ownership over. It should be their document. Their plan. This is their treatment journey, after all. Give them a physical copy of their treatment plan or show them how to access their treatment plan at any time in their patient portal for future reference. When you update their treatment plan, again, involve them in the process at the ground level. 

Yes, this takes more time than simply racing through a treatment plan. But is it worth it? YES! Your patients will be more motivated and exhibit less overwhelm and learned helplessness when you guide them to take ownership over their health. This is one of the best recovery skills you can foster in your patients. 

Create Your Next Substance Abuse Treatment Plan With Behave Health 

At Behave Health, our intuitive, easy-to-use templates and forms streamline every part of the addiction treatment process. With our EHR, you can complete a patient-centered treatment plan on your computer, on your phone, or on a tablet for maximum flexibility and integration into the clinical environment. 

Our all-in-one app puts clinical, administration, staff, admissions, alumni, residents, treatment plans, billing, insurance authorizations and more - all at your fingertips.

Get your free trial started today and see why more addiction treatment centers prefer Behave Health.