Recent research has shown that women and men differ in substance abuse etiology, disease progression, and access to treatment for substance abuse. Substance abuse treatment specifically designed for women has been proposed as one way to meet women's distinctive needs and reduce barriers to their receiving and remaining in treatment. However, relatively few substance abuse treatment programs offer specialized services for women, and effectiveness has not been fully evaluated. This article reviews the literature on the extent and effectiveness of substance abuse treatment programming for women and provides an overview of what is known about the components of successful treatment programs for women. Thirty-eight studies of the effect on treatment outcomes of substance abuse treatment programming for women were reviewed. Seven were randomized, controlled trials, and 31 were nonrandomized studies. In our review, six components of substance abuse treatment programming for women were examined: child care, prenatal care, women-only programs, supplemental services and workshops that address women-focused topics, mental health programming, and comprehensive programming. The studies found positive associations between these six components and treatment completion, length of stay, decreased use of substances, reduced mental health symptoms, improved birth outcomes, employment, self-reported health status, and HIV risk reduction. These findings suggest that to improve the future health and well-being of women and their children, there is a continued need for well-designed studies of substance abuse treatment programming for women.

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Public reporting burden for the collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington VA 22202-4302. Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be subject to a penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number. The survey is the eighth in a series of DoD surveys conducted since 1980 and has three broad aims: (a) to continue the survey of substance use among active-duty military personnel, (b) to assess progress toward selected Healthy People 2000 objectives for active-duty military personnel, and (c) to provide baseline data regarding progress toward selected Healthy People 2010 objectives for active-duty military personnel. As such, it provides comprehensive and detailed estimates of the prevalence of alcohol, illicit drug, and tobacco use and the negative effects of alcohol use. In combination with data from the prior surveys in the series, it provides data for trends. It also provides estimates for health behaviors pertaining to fitness and cardiovascular disease risk reduction, injuries and injury prevention, and sexually transmitted disease risk reduction. In addition, it offers an assessment of the mental health of military personnel, including stress and depression, and examines oral health and dental check-ups, gambling behaviors, and special gender-specific health issues pertaining to women's and men's health. REPORT DATE OCT 20032Many individuals contributed to the success of this study. Among DoD and military Services personnel, special appreciation is due to Ms. Kim Frazier, Lieutenant Colonel Michael Hartzell, Lieutenant Colonel Tom Williams, and Dr. Michael Peterson, the Cooperative Agreement Officer's Representatives, who provided valuable guidance and facilitated conduct of the study. Excellent liaison between DoD, RTI, and the Services was provided by Colonel Regina Curtis for the Army, Mr. Linden Butler and Mr. William Flannery for the Navy, Lieutenant Danisha Robbins and Mr. Cruz Martinez for the Marine Corps, and Dr. Paul DiTullio and Mr. Charlie Hamilton for the Air Force. We also gratefully acknowledge the efforts of Mr. Robert Hamilton, Ms. Carole Massey, and Ms. Sue Reinhold of the Defense Manpower Data Center for constructing the installation-level sampling frame, selecting the sample of military personnel, and relaying current military population counts used for the analysis weights. The cooperation of installation commanders, both for the pilot test and the main survey, and the assista...

This paper examines the relationship between perceived stress (at work, in family or personal life, and from being a woman in the military) and substance use (heavy drinking, illicit drug use, cigarette smoking) among active-duty military women and men. Data were drawn from over 16,000 respondents to the 1995 Department of Defense Survey of Health Related Behaviors Among Military Personnel. Findings indicated substantial substance use and perceived high stress in the armed forces. Further, the relation between substance use and stress varied by gender. Military women reported substantially lower rates of heavy drinking than men, but had similar rates of illicit drug use and cigarette smoking. Both military women and men were more likely to describe their military duties as more stressful than their family or personal lives; for women, the stress associated with being a woman in the military was second to stress at work. Stress at work or in the family was an important predictor of substance use among military men, but not among military women. For military women, stress associated with being a woman in the military was predictive of illicit drug use and cigarette use. These findings suggest that more effective stress management strategies may need to be implemented for military men to reduce the link between stress and heavy alcohol use, illicit drug use, and smoking.

Public reporting burden for the collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington VA 22202-4302. Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be subject to a penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number. The survey is the eighth in a series of DoD surveys conducted since 1980 and has three broad aims: (a) to continue the survey of substance use among active-duty military personnel, (b) to assess progress toward selected Healthy People 2000 objectives for active-duty military personnel, and (c) to provide baseline data regarding progress toward selected Healthy People 2010 objectives for active-duty military personnel. As such, it provides comprehensive and detailed estimates of the prevalence of alcohol, illicit drug, and tobacco use and the negative effects of alcohol use. In combination with data from the prior surveys in the series, it provides data for trends. It also provides estimates for health behaviors pertaining to fitness and cardiovascular disease risk reduction, injuries and injury prevention, and sexually transmitted disease risk reduction. In addition, it offers an assessment of the mental health of military personnel, including stress and depression, and examines oral health and dental check-ups, gambling behaviors, and special gender-specific health issues pertaining to women's and men's health. REPORT DATE OCT 20032Many individuals contributed to the success of this study. Among DoD and military Services personnel, special appreciation is due to Ms. Kim Frazier, Lieutenant Colonel Michael Hartzell, Lieutenant Colonel Tom Williams, and Dr. Michael Peterson, the Cooperative Agreement Officer's Representatives, who provided valuable guidance and facilitated conduct of the study. Excellent liaison between DoD, RTI, and the Services was provided by Colonel Regina Curtis for the Army, Mr. Linden Butler and Mr. William Flannery for the Navy, Lieutenant Danisha Robbins and Mr. Cruz Martinez for the Marine Corps, and Dr. Paul DiTullio and Mr. Charlie Hamilton for the Air Force. We also gratefully acknowledge the efforts of Mr. Robert Hamilton, Ms. Carole Massey, and Ms. Sue Reinhold of the Defense Manpower Data Center for constructing the installation-level sampling frame, selecting the sample of military personnel, and relaying current military population counts used for the analysis weights. The cooperation of installation commanders, both for the pilot test and the main survey, and the assista...