Substance Abuse 1. What should be included in a “gender-specific” rehabilitation Addiction is a serious condition that affects all genders. However, research indicates that men and women do not get ‘hooked’ for th...Read More
~Posted on
Feb 2019
1. What should be
included in a “gender-specific” rehabilitation
Addiction is a serious condition that affects all genders.
However, research indicates that men and women do not get ‘hooked’ for the same
reasons. As such, gender-specific rehabilitation is recommended by experts. A
gender-specific treatment program is tailor-made to suit the unique needs of a
particular gender. It is also called a single-sex or gender-separate program.
Patients of “gender-specific” programs should not engage with patients of the
opposite gender ("The Benefits of Gender-Specific
Treatment Programs | JourneyPure", 2018). Therefore, a hypothetical
woman being admitted to a male-dominated rehabilitation program and given a
booklet on recovery for women doesn’t make the program “gender specific.”
Single-gender programs exist for both men and women. Such
treatment programs should be offered because people of the same gender tend to
be more comfortable with each other and can discuss common experiences without
fear of being embarrassed or judged. That makes it easier for them to work
towards recovery together. Some components to be included in such programs
include; sexual abuse, stigma, domestic violence, discrimination, and
behavioral addiction including sex addiction. These components are specific
because people of opposite sexes might not be comfortable sharing them.
"Gender-specific" rehabilitation is an effective way to achieve
successful rehabilitation as indicated by studies (Miller,
2018).
2. Cross-cultural
diagnosis
Culture may not only mold group attitudes or values, but it
can also shape perceptions of what works or what is helpful or what isn’t as
well as diagnosis. Cross-cultural diagnosis is a popular term, especially in
psychiatry. Special knowledge and assistance is required for accurate diagnosis
of patients since they come from various cultural backgrounds. The
sociocultural environment within which a patient functions or lives is
essential when separating culture-bound behaviors and beliefs from
psychopathology (Alarcon, 2009). Despite the fact that patients come from
different backgrounds, experts have shown that it’s possible to apply
diagnostic standards that have been developed within one culture on a different
culture. For instance, professionals have explored the cross-cultural aspects
of alcoholism as well as anxiety disorders while some like psychosis appear as
problematic. Other conditions such as depression may either work or be
problematic depending on circumstances (Jeffrey, 2015).