Addiction treatment is offered at different levels of care, to address different degrees of addiction.
The more severe an addiction is the higher the level of care needed to treat it. The level of care reflects how much direct intervention by medical professionals and other kinds of addiction specialists is needed for a person to stop compulsively ingesting the substance. In some cases, patients need to be in an inpatient setting for treatment to be possible, and in some cases, it’s ok to handle the case in outpatient.
The level of care a person needs generally depends on what substance they’ve been using, how much they’ve been using, and how long they’ve been using it. The longer we’ve been using, and the more we’ve been using, the more likely we are to need a medically supervised and very structured setting to receive our treatment.
Partial hospitalization programs (PHPs) and intensive outpatient programs (IOPs) are two different levels of care that lie on this spectrum of care.
What are the differences between IOP vs PHP for women?
As the name implies, it is a step below full hospitalization and has many features of a hospital setting without being in a hospital, such as medical staff, a lot of structure, and a contained environment.
Intensive Outpatient Programs (IOP) are less structured, more flexible environments that are appropriate for people who have completed higher levels of care and are being “stepped down” gradually to a greater level of independence. IOPs are also appropriate for people whose addictions didn’t progress far enough to warrant higher levels of care.
What is PHP for women?
Partial Hospitalization Programs provide women with a comprehensive treatment program that is intensive and highly structured but allows for living at home or in special housing such as sober living (a transitional, safe housing option for people re-entering the community after residential treatment).
Participants in a PHP program receive their treatment at a dedicated day facility and are typically required to participate in several hours of therapy, activities, education, coping skills training, and group therapy daily.
The high level of participation and structure reflects the necessary supervision and frequency of therapeutic intervention that women struggling with addiction need, to remain sober and to do the healing work necessary to stay sober once they complete treatment.
PHPs offer a package of different therapeutic interventions, including individual psychotherapy with a counselor, therapy groups with peers, coping skills training groups, education about the disease of addiction, family therapy, and milieu activities like gardening, cooking, and arts and crafts. PHPs have psychiatric and medical supervision at the facility.
PHPs commonly offer evidence-based therapeutic models like cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) that have been shown to efficiently train psychological skills that help people stay sober.
In holistic PHPs like the one we offer at Villa Kali Ma, many adjunct modalities like expressive arts therapy, yoga, meditation, massage, and options to explore personal spirituality are woven into the core program.
Another aspect that distinguishes Villa Kali Ma is our provision of cutting-edge treatments that specifically address the role of traumatization, such as EMDR, Parts Work, and Somatic Experiencing.
What is an IOP for women?
Intensive Outpatient Programs, or IOPs, are also very structured but require fewer daily hours of participation.
IOPs are similar to PHPs in their essence, and cover many of the same bases (psychiatric care, individual therapy, group work, skills training, and peer activities), but are suited for people who are ready to experience more flexibility and independence because they can do so without relapsing into their addiction again.
The purpose of IOPs is to make it possible to attend treatment while also beginning to transition back into ordinary life, for example through returning to work or family duties.
IOPs are intended as a bridging option, for gradually and carefully decreasing the level of supervision and intensity, structure, and frequency of therapeutic intervention.
This way participants can slowly adjust to less structure, and practice applying their new skills, attitudes, and behaviors at home and work, outside of the treatment setting. IOP can be likened to a stage of taking training wheels off, while still under supervision and care.
Because of the focus on returning to the community, IOPs typically orient towards the graduation process and preparing for life after treatment. Relapse prevention planning represents a key component of any good treatment program, and naturally takes more focus the closer a person is to finishing treatment.
What is the effectiveness of IOP and PHP for women?
After residential treatment, PHP is the best option for treating addiction because of the high level of structure, supervision, and intensity of care.
The rigorous schedule of therapeutic work and a protected environment are generally necessary for a bad case of addiction to be reversed.
In general, the worse the addiction, the more treatment is necessary to heal it. PHPs are associated with better chances of longer-term recovery compared with lower levels of care because they provide the most comprehensive treatment in the most effective amount of time.
IOPs are also successful, but usually only when participants have either already completed higher levels of care (PHP or residential), or when addiction is less severe, requiring less treatment to heal.
What is aftercare after IOP and PHP for women?
Aftercare programs usually offer groups, activities, and some individual check-in sessions for staying in connection with treatment staff and sober peers. Aftercare programs provide support, accountability, practical help, and advice for topics that come up in the life of a newly sober person. Aftercare is an important part of relapse prevention and helps people stay on track and remember their tools.
Even after the conclusion of aftercare, it is highly recommended to actively involve oneself in cultivating recovery ongoingly, through daily participation in 12-step programs like AA or NA (Narcotics Anonymous). Through the rise of online meetings, daily connection with recovering peers has become more and more feasible (while the benefits of in-person meetings are many as well).
Villa Kali Ma offers PHP and IOP for women
Villa Kali Ma offers a full spectrum of treatment for women suffering from addiction, addressing all levels of care that can be needed, from medically supervised detox to residential treatment, to PHP, down to IOP.