Inpatient vs Outpatient Treatment in Wisconsin

What Are The Differences?

While struggling with a substance use disorder in Wisconsin, you would ideally be diagnosed with addiction. This is a condition that affects the brain and involves a complex relationship between your environment and genetic makeup.

With this condition, you will find yourself compulsively seeking and using drugs and alcohol. This is true even when you get to a point where you realize that addiction has been causing various consequences and negative effects in your health, life, and relationships.

At some point, your addiction will start harming your productivity, achievements, health, wellness, and financial wellbeing. At this stage, you may decide to seek treatment. Today, addiction treatment in Wisconsin is offered on both an inpatient and outpatient basis.

While struggling with a substance use disorder, it is essential that you enroll in the right type of addiction treatment program to help you overcome the condition and continue managing it in the long term.

Consider the following differences between inpatient and outpatient addiction treatment in Wisconsin:

1. Inpatient Drug Rehabilitation

When you enroll in an inpatient drug rehab program, you will be required to stay at the treatment facility so that you can benefit from the residential services that it provides. This will allow you to immerse yourself completely in your recovery program because you will be living at the center, eating there, and enjoying various structured treatment services.

These services include medication management, detoxification, skills training, therapy, and counseling - among many others. The immersion will encourage you to make radical changes in how you make choices, think about yourself, and approach substances of abuse.

Most inpatient or residential addiction treatment programs will last between 30 and 90 days. However, some of them might go on for a bit longer especially if you have been diagnosed with a severe substance use disorder, or if you also have co-occurring medical and mental health disorders.

2. Outpatient Drug Rehabilitation

In an outpatient treatment program, you will not be required to live at the rehabilitation center. Instead, you can come for your treatment sessions several hours every week before going back to your normal daily schedule.

These programs provide most of the same or similar services that you would typically find in an inpatient treatment center. However, the mode of treatment will allow you to continue living at home or staying in a sober or transitional living center.

Some of these programs are based on therapy. This means that you only need to commit to them for a couple of hours every day for several days a week. As a result, you might still be able to continue maintaining your work responsibilities, taking care of your family commitments, or attending school sessions.

Other programs tend to be a bit more intense. However, they will only last for a short while - meaning that you will soon be able to maintain your regular daily schedule without worrying that you will start using drugs and drinking alcohol again.

Outpatient addiction treatment is also offered through various programs. These include intensive outpatient programs, partial hospitalization programs, and regular outpatient programs.

Often, you might find that you need both inpatient and outpatient drug rehab services to be able to fully overcome your substance use disorder. This form of treatment is referred to as a continuum of care. When you choose it, you can first go through an inpatient treatment program before making the transition to an outpatient program.

How Long Do They Last?

NIDA - the National Institute on Drug Abuse - reports that outcomes from addiction treatment in Wisconsin as elsewhere in the United States will improve if you spend more time in an inpatient or outpatient drug rehab program.

To this end, it is recommended that you spend a minimum of 90 days in an addiction treatment program. By so doing, you can easily increase the likelihood that you will remain sober and fully recovered in the long term.

However, you do not need to complete the recommended treatment duration of 3 months while in an inpatient drug rehab program. You can also combined a bit of inpatient treatment with highly structured outpatient drug rehab to enjoy more effective outcomes in your treatment.

That said, the longer you spend in an addiction treatment program, the easier it might be for you to achieve a state of full recovery from your substance abuse and dependence. However, even after you have been through such a program, it is recommended that you seek other additional services to reduce your risk of relapse.

Today, you will find that most of the drug rehab centers in Wisconsin will help you create an aftercare plan for this purpose. They can also help you manage your relapse should it occur, as well as provide you with additional assistance and support so that you are able to achieve and maintain your long term sobriety.

Today, there are different addiction treatment programs based on length. Your choice of a program will largely depend on the severity of your substance use disorder, as well as on the existence of any other additional physical or mental health issues that you are struggling with over and above your addiction. Your options in terms of length, to this end, include:

• 28 to 30 day treatment programs
• 60 day treatment programs
• 90 day treatment programs
• Extended care programs, that last longer than 90 days

Even so, you should always remember that improved outcomes in sobriety will depend on how long you spend in an addiction treatment program. This is because various research studies have pointed out that treatment that lasts longer than 90 days tends to offer more successful outcomes.

You might also want to consider combining both inpatient and outpatient addiction treatment, follow it up with counseling and therapy, as well as ensure that you have a solid aftercare plan in place.

In the same way, addiction recovery is often a lifelong process. To this end, you should view your addiction treatment - whether on an inpatient or outpatient basis - as the first step that you need to take while trying to achieve full sobriety.

This is because addiction has been defined as a chronic and relapsing condition. As a result, you may find that you need extended treatment and ongoing support and monitoring through a wide variety of aftercare programs to ensure your long term success.

What Is The Cost Difference?

Since you will be living in the treatment facility over the entire duration of your rehabilitation, inpatient addiction treatment often tends to cost more than outpatient care that will allow you to go back home after you have received your treatment services. The cost of inpatient care will also be higher because you will be receiving accommodation and meals at the treatment center.

An outpatient treatment program, on the other hand, will allow you to continue living at home. As a result, this could potentially cut down on the cost of your addiction recovery services.

Research studies have shown that the following are the typical costs that you can expect to pay when you are enrolled in these treatment programs:

• 30 Day Inpatient Rehab: From $400 to $900 for a day of treatment
• 60 Day Inpatient Rehab: From $300 to $800 for a day of treatment
• 90 Day Inpatient Rehab: From $200 to $700 for a day of treatment
• Intensive Outpatient: From $100 to $500 for every treatment session

Even so, the price of outpatient treatment programs will largely depend on how long you will spend at the center as well as the frequency of your rehabilitation meetings. It might be cheaper if you choose longer treatment programs.

Additionally, a standard outpatient treatment program will often require you to receive rehabilitation services for 1 to 2 days every week with each treatment session lasting between a hour and two. These programs often cost less than partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient treatment programs that require a greater time commitment.

Which Is More Effective?

It is essential that you get help for your substance abuse and addiction as soon as you realize that you have a drug or alcohol related problem. Both inpatient and outpatient addiction treatment programs can provide this type of help.

It is also important that you consider several factors before making a choice between inpatient and outpatient drug rehab. By understanding these factors and the ways in which they could affect your long term recovery, you may be in a better position to make a more suitable choice. To this end, you need to ask yourself the following questions before you commit to any drug rehab program:

• Are there drugs and alcohol in your home, school, or work environment that could cause you to relapse?
• Are there people in your family who might use drugs or drink alcohol while you are enrolled in a treatment program?
• Do you enjoy a strong support system that could motivate your long term sobriety?
• Have you been diagnosed with any other mental health or medical issues that would require you to seek specialized inpatient treatment?
• Is it possible for you to commute from home to your chosen drug rehab center several times each week?
• Is it possible for you to leave your home, school, and work obligations long enough to enroll in an inpatient program?
• Is the environment in which you live supportive and stable enough to ensure your long term sobriety?
• Will you need specialized services while enrolled in rehab, such as gender specific drug treatment and handicap assistance?

CITATIONS

https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/principles-drug-addiction-treatment-research-based-guide-third-edition/evidence-based-approaches-to-drug-addiction-treatment

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK230395/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3092368/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3560851/