Principle Investigator:  Melissa Thomas

Project Director:  Jytte Methmann

Duration: 3 years, ending July 31, 2008.

Summary: The purpose of this project is to create a sustainable system of care that effectively breaks the cycle of addiction in Arizona’s families through early identification, intervention and treatment for substance use disorders among youth and young adults. Arizona’s Youth Substance Abuse Treatment Coordination project will establish a single locus of responsibility within the state for expanding access and the quality and delivery of substance abuse services for the state’s high-risk population of young people age 12-24 years old and their family members.

Because substance abuse issues in young people typically first identified as an outgrowth of other inappropriate behaviors, including truancy and criminal justice system involvement, intermediary targets for the infrastructure grant will include other agencies and organizations interacting with the target population such as the child welfare and the criminal justice systems.