Interventionist
From Drug Rehab Wiki
An interventionist is a professional counselor who helps families, friends or employers of someone who abusing drugs or alcohol stage a confrontation with that person and persuade him to enter a treatment program.
The interventionist arranges for the time and place for the confrontation. Sometimes the person involved knows in advance about the meeting, and sometimes the confrontation comes as a surprise. Before the meeting, the interventionist must also locate an appropriate treatment program based on the person's individual needs, prepare everyone who will attend, and then put everything in place so that after the confrontation, she can be taken directly to the center and enter treatment immediately. The interventionist also works with insurance companies and employers, if necessary, to set up a payment plan for treatment and a leave of absence from work (or school), if necessary.
At the intervention meeting, family, friends and sometimes employers might read letters testifying to how the person's substance abuse has hurt their lives, how much they care about the person, and why they believe he needs to enter treatment. Participants may threaten the person with divorce or separations, refusals to keep lying and covering up for the problem, or even job termination if the substance abuser does not agree to get help. After the meeting, the interventionist and the spouse or other person closest to the substance abuser drives him to the treatment center.
Not every intervention ends successfully with the person entering treatment -- the person involved always maintains the right to refuse to go.
The current average cost of an intervention is between $700 and $4000.
The career of professional interventionist is not highly regulated because it is relatively new, dating back only to the mid-1960s. The Association of Intervention Specialists, formed in 1992, can provide a list of board-certified members, who have agreed to adhere to the Association's code of ethics. Another way to find a qualified interventionist is to inquire at a respected substance abuse treatment center or to ask your family doctor.
