Denver Family Drug Courts and the Betty Ford Center Children's Program Reunify Families Broken by Addiction

AURORA, Colo., Jan. 5, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- For many families with an addiction to alcohol and other drugs, a promising solution comes through the court system. Family integrated treatment court (FIT court) or family drug court provides families hope for recovery and the opportunity to heal and strengthen the family.

"I've earned my kids trust back," says Jennifer, a mother in Jefferson County, Colorado, who completed a family drug court program.

There are over 2700 drug courts in the U.S. and over 300 FIT courts. The first family drug court was implemented in Reno, Nevada, in 1995. FIT courts focus on families in which selected child abuse, neglect and dependency cases are identified where parental substance abuse is a primary factor. The court systems, child protective services and counselors work together to provide a safe, nurturing home for the children while assisting parents to become free from alcohol and other drugs. The Betty Ford Center Children's Program often plays an important part in that recovery.

"We help counsel many children from families going through the FIT court process," says Jerry Moe, National Director Children's Programs. "Our work complements the FIT court mandate in healing the family."

View a short video about Jennifer and Gabby's experience with both FIT court and the Betty Ford Center Children's Program.

For Jennifer and her daughter Gabby, the FIT court in the Jefferson County Courts was the first effective treatment that began the process of healing. Another key component of that process took place at the Denver-area Betty Ford Center Children's Program, which helped Gabby understand the disease that afflicted her mother.

"I told her how I felt and why I felt like that," says Gabby. "What I learned at the Betty Ford Center Children's Program is that I can be honest without lying to her about what I feel."

FIT court has proven to be an effective method for reunifying the family. After completing the process, families have experienced lower rates of recidivism and relapse. In addition, the cost benefits to society serve to underscore the program's benefits. Strains on the judicial system and family foster care programs are lower because children whose parents complete FIT court spend less time in the system.

"The Betty Ford Center Children's Program assists in nurturing a healthy family environment following a successful FIT court completion," says Jerry Moe. "We help the parents understand what the children have been thinking and feeling, especially in terms of the trauma the children and family have gone through."

About the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation
The Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation helps people reclaim their lives from the disease of addiction. It is the nation's largest nonprofit treatment provider, with a legacy that began in 1949 and includes the 1982 founding of the Betty Ford Center. With 17 sites in California, Minnesota, Oregon, Illinois, New York, Florida, Massachusetts, Colorado and Texas, the Foundation offers prevention and recovery solutions nationwide and across the entire continuum of care for youth and adults. It includes the largest recovery publishing house in the country, a fully-accredited graduate school of addiction studies, an addiction research center, an education arm for medical professionals and a unique children's program, and is the nation's leader in advocacy and policy for treatment and recovery. Learn more at www.HazeldenBettyFord.org and on Twitter @hazldnbettyford.

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SOURCE Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

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