Treatment courts, including drug courts, typically engage in a highly collaborative and hands-on approach to support individuals experiencing substance use disorders. The COVID-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on drug treatment court programs and their ability to serve clients. While an increasing number of drug treatment court programs have begun to incorporate technology and teleservices into programming during COVID-19, implementation barriers are a common occurrence. This webinar will present recent findings from the National Drug Court Institute’s survey of Bureau of Justice Assistance grantees on how drug treatment court programs across the country made changes and adopted innovations to minimize interruptions to programming during COVID-19, as well as lessons learned to date. Spotlights from a local drug treatment court program utilizing virtual platforms for streamlining services during the pandemic will highlight practical strategies for increasing program participation and improving participant experience through the use of technology.
Objectives:
After attending this webinar, participants will be able to:
- Understand some of the key impacts to date of COVID-19 on drug treatment court programs
- Discuss innovative technologies currently being used in drug treatment court programs, both for daily court operations and for the coordination and delivery of behavioral health treatment services and supports
- Identify practical ways to support drug treatment court participants who participate in virtual hearings, treatment services, day reporting, and drug testing
- Discuss training approaches for drug treatment court program
participants to optimize the experience of using virtual platforms
Presenters:
- Victor Vasquez III, DWI Court Program Director, Webb County Court-at-Law II, Judicial Center of Excellence, Webb County, Texas
- Charlene E. Zilius, M.P.A., Research Associate, NPC Research, Portland, Oregon
Register for the Webinar
This webinar will offer live captioning and American Sign Language interpreting for participants.