Twelve-month outcomes of trauma-informed interventions for women with co-occurring disorders

Women with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders frequently have a history of interpersonal violence, and past research has suggested that they are not served effectively by the current service system. The goal of the Women, Co-occurring Disorders, and Violence Study was to develop and test the effectiveness of new service approaches specifically designed for these women.

A quasi-experimental treatment outcome study was conducted from 2001 to 2003 at nine sites. Although intervention specifics such as treatment length and modality varied across sites, each site used a comprehensive, integrated, trauma-informed, and consumer-involved approach to treatment. Substance use problem severity, mental health symptoms, and trauma symptoms were measured at baseline, and follow-up data were analyzed with prospective meta-analysis and hierarchical linear modeling.

A total of 2,026 women had data at the 12-month follow-up: 1,018 in the intervention group and 1,008 in the usual-care group. For substance use outcomes, no effect was found. The meta-analysis demonstrated small but statistically significant overall improvement in women's trauma and mental health symptoms in the intervention relative to the usual-care comparison condition. Analysis of key program elements demonstrated that integrating substance abuse, mental health, and trauma-related issues into counseling yielded greater improvement, whereas the delivery of numerous core services yielded less improvement relative to the comparison group. A few person-level characteristics were associated with increases or decreases in the intervention effect. These neither moderated nor supplanted the effects of integrated counseling.

Outcomes for women with co-occurring disorders and a history of violence and trauma may improve with integrated treatment.