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Published on: June 6, 2020
Role of Context, Resources, and Target Population in the Fidelity of Critical Time Intervention
Stacey L Barrenger1, Liat S Kriegel1, Beth Angell1
1Dr. Barrenger is with the Silver School of Social Work, New York University, New York City (e-mail: sb4705@nyu.edu ). Ms. Kriegel is with the School of Social Work, University of Southern California, Los Angeles. Dr. Angell is with the School of Social Work, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey. Dr. Draine is with the School of Social Work, Temple University, Philadelphia.
Objective:
The goal of this study was to understand departures from a model program, critical time intervention (CTI), when used with a population of men with mental illness who were leaving prison, a new population for the intervention.
Methods:
A fidelity study was conducted with the CTI Fidelity Scale Manual, and six program staff participated in semistructured interviews. Thematic analysis of interviews supplemented information on departures from the model.
Results:
The overall fidelity score indicated a well-implemented program, but low scores on early engagement, early linking with community resources, monitoring the transfer of services from CTI to community services, and nine-month follow-up were related to the context of the prison setting, the population of men leaving prison, and environmental resources.
Conclusions:
The setting in which evidence-based practices are applied, the environmental resources available, and the target population may affect program fidelity.
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