Substance use disorder treatment programs in Switzerland and the USA: Program characteristics and 1-year

Substance use disorder treatment programs in Switzerland and the USA: Program characteristics and 1-year outcomes:

Findings

Compared to Swiss patients, US patients had more severe substance use and psychological problems at intake and although they did not differ on abstinence and remission at follow-up, had somewhat poorer outcomes in other areas of functioning. Swiss programs were longer and included more individual treatment sessions; US programs included more group sessions and were more oriented toward a disease model of treatment. Overall, length of program, treatment intensity and 12-step orientation were associated with better 1-year outcomes for patients in both Swiss and US programs.