A trauma-sensitive and trauma-informed treatment intervention addressing problematic substance use for forensic patients

This chapter examines the relationship between trauma and substance misuse within the forensic patient population by summarising the literature regarding the prevalence of and interrelationships between trauma, problematic substance use, violence and offending, and mental health. Patient voices are incorporated into the discussion by drawing on the findings from a mixed-methods research study completed by the author investigating this relationship. There is a lack of research with this population, and there are also few treatment programmes designed to address the interconnected relationships; a newly developed trauma-sensitive and trauma-informed substance misuse treatment intervention underpinned by Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT), and informed by a detailed literature review, will be introduced. This will include a descriptive and theoretical account of the treatment programme together with the rationale for its components. The clinical value of CFT’s integration into this bespoke therapy, and some of the challenges with its operationalisation in a high-secure hospital, will also be presented.