How Does It Differ From Conventional Rehab?

The involvement of outside case workers and doctors will need to be incorporated into the treatment plan, and there needs to an awareness of the pharmaceutical requirements of these patients, as well as any pharmaceutical side effects issues.

Medical team involvement throughout the rehab stay ensures optimal health promotion and adequate pharmaceutical therapies. Community care workers, existing doctors and addictions professionals will need to work together to develop a medical care plan cognizant of the special challenges facing this community of drug abusers. Medical monitoring needs to continue throughout the rehab, and there needs to be an understanding of the possible HIV and AIDS complications, and how they may interact with detox and continuing recovery.

Mental health professionals also need to be very involved in the regular monitoring of these individuals.

Because HIV and AIDS can induce significant mental health strains in the non abusing HIV positive community, these mental health issues are exacerbated when accompanied by substance abuse. Mental health professionals need to be a part of ongoing care, and appropriate medications and therapies offered with the unique requirements of this population in mind.

Assessment and Pre-Intake

Due to the increased complexity of care, the pre-intake assessment should be more rigorous than normal, and should include consultation with all current medical personal and case management workers within the patient's network of support. An accurate picture of currently prescribed medications, therapies and health issues needs to be incorporated into the treatment plan. Because very low T cell counts indicate an increased probability of cognitive declines and mental health challenges, an examination of recent medical testing, or the performance of testing at intake needs to occur.