Project Connect | Plataforma de Evidencias

This is a family intervention program for children and adolescents from 0 to 17 years old, whose families are in risky situations or under the supervision of specialized child protection institutions due to the abusive use of psychoactive substances. The objective is to promote the protection of children and prevent institutional separation between parents and children.
The program offers home counseling, parenting skills training, drug abuse monitoring, assessment, and referral to other assistance services. The intervention lasts 13 months and includes home visits twice a week.

Impact evaluations

An impact evaluation showed significant improvements in the program’s beneficiaries in terms of residential livability, improved mental health status of the adult caregiver, improved knowledge of child care, and improved scores on measures of risk of substance use. There was a greater return of children to their families of origin [1]. A second study reinforces the positive impact of the program on both parenting and child safety and permanency [2].

Bibliographic reference

[1] Olsen, L. J. (1995). Services for substance abuse-affected families: The Project Connect Experience. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 12(3), 183-196. doi:10.1007/BF01876771

[2] Olsen, L. J., Laprade, V., & Holmes, W. M. (2015). Supports for families affected by substance abuse. Journal of Public Child Welfare, 9(5), 551-570. doi:10.1080/15548732.2015.1091761

Information source

The California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse