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Continued Decline in Youth Substance Abuse

Current illicit drug use among teens is continuing to decline, according to a new report by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) released today. The study also shows positive signs that teens are seeing the dangers of abusing prescription drugs and methamphetamine and are pushing back. Among youth ages 12-17, the 2007 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), the Nation's largest substance use survey, shows that the significant decline in overall past month illicit drug use that began in 2002 continued through 2007, from 11.6 percent to 9.5 percent.

The survey, released at the start of the 19th Annual National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month, shows that the reductions in youth drug use occurred for nearly every type of illicit drug including marijuana, cocaine, hallucinogens, LSD, and Ecstasy. The survey also shows dramatic declines in meth use, down by 67 percent (from 0.3% to 0.1%) and prescription drug abuse among teens, which declined overall by 18 percent, from 4 percent to 3.3 percent between 2002-2007.

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Before You See Your First Client: 55 Things Counselors, Therapists and Human Service Workers Need To

Columns - Media Review

Written by Lindsay E. Freese, MEd, MAC, LADC

Thursday, 31 March 2005

Howard Rosenthal, EdD, is a professor and Coordinator of the Human Service program at St. Louis Community College at Florissant Valley and he’s written a most interesting book, “Before You See Your First Client.” At first glance his book may appear overly basic but when viewed through a “beginner’s mind” its value becomes clear. A common trap for those of us who teach is the assumption, possibly having forgotten our student days, that our students’ present with a certain body of knowledge that they really do not have and we tend to formulate our instruction on basic information which doesn’t yet exist. Dr. Rosenthal clearly remembers that we too learned our basics and his book is predicated on that.

“Before You See Your First Client” presents “55 things counselors, therapists and human service workers need to know.” His “things” are not the stuff of textbooks and infrequently included in coursework, with the possible exception of internship or practical experiences, which is one place where this book will have great value. The particular value of an education internship is often twofold, one is the opportunity of the student to sit with and participate in agency staff and clinical meetings, the other is the educational programs’ seminar class that typically accompanies the site placement experience. Students meet in the classroom with the professor and discuss activities taking place at their site, clinical cases, etc. Students in the latter setting are often thirsting for information on what it’s going to be like for them when they are working as counselors, how they get a job, etc. It’s at this point in the seminar that I would pull this book out. From a presentation perspective this book is full of anecdotes taken directly from Dr. Rosenthal’s vast experience. He models the important moral of learning from our own mistakes. He is appropriately willing to detail many humbling experiences for the benefit of others’ learning.

The 55 “things” he’s chosen to present cover a broad spectrum for the reader. Some topics may not apply for entry-level counselors as they pertain to issues and pitfalls that present themselves only after having achieved significant education, licensure or certification, but, knowing what you will need to know isn’t a bad thing. Other vital information relates to ethics issues, (No. 8: “Never Give Any Client Information without a Signed Release-of-Information Form,” No. 22: “Read Ethical Guidelines Before You Even So Much As Hug a Client.”), employment and clinical practice topics, answers to many questions on credentialing, resume-building managed care, billing, and malpractice insurance. It is especially valuable to read of those moments when one questioned their viability as a counselor as the result of an embarrassing or painful occurrence and feeling validated when we read that this happens to us all. Books such as this can be an important part of a burn-out protection plan.

Before You See Your First Client: “55 things counselors, therapists and human service workers need to know” is published by Brunner-Routledge, (c) 2005. The ISBN is 0-415-95064-3. Howard Rosenthal’s other books include “Favorite Counseling and Therapy Techniques” and the “Encyclopedia of Counseling.”

Lindsay E. Freese, MEd, MAC, LADC ( This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ) is Professor of Human Service at the New Hampshire Community Technical College in Concord, NH. Over the past 20 years, he has worked in private practice and both clinically and administratively in residential programs. He is a past president of the New Hampshire Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselor Association.