Clinical Guidance

What the evidence says

The findings below are drawn from the U.S. Surgeon General's report Facing Addiction in America (2016).

• Substance use disorders can be treated effectively, with recurrence rates no higher than those for other chronic illnesses such as diabetes, asthma, and hypertension. With comprehensive continuing care, recovery is an achievable outcome.
• Treatment at every level of care, inpatient, residential, and outpatient, is cost-effective compared with no treatment.
• The goals and management of substance use disorder treatment are the same as for other chronic illnesses: reduce key symptoms, improve health and function, and sustain both. This holds for co-occurring psychiatric disorders. The components are medications, behavioral therapies, and recovery support services.
• Evidence-based behavioral therapies work, but are often delivered with limited fidelity and are under-used. Treatments that use them show better results than those that do not.
• Electronic health records, telehealth, and remote monitoring show promise for improving access, engagement, and continuing supportive care.

Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Surgeon General. Facing Addiction in America: The Surgeon General's Report on Alcohol, Drugs, and Health. Washington, DC: HHS, 2016.

Where Torchlight fits

Torchlight delivers the recovery support services and the coordination around them: intervention, placement, transport, monitoring, and a year of continuing care with two Care Coordinators and case manager oversight. Medications and therapy stay with the treating clinicians. We report attendance and monitoring results to the parties named in the client's release.

Clinical advisors

Torchlight's clinical direction comes from Dr. Viktoriya Magid, a licensed clinical psychologist, and Dr. Jeffrey Cluver, a psychiatrist in addiction medicine. Taft Draper, RD, CLT, advises on nutrition in recovery. Their profiles are on the team page.

Working with us

For clinicians and treatment centers, the practical details of a referral are on the Professional Referrals page. John Furtmeier, CIP, CCMI, takes the first call.