The Parent Support Network at the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids is a system of care for parents whose teen and young adult children are struggling with drugs and alcohol.
Grounded in the evidence-based principles of motivational interviewing and Community Reinforcement and Family Training (CRAFT), the Parent Support Network helps parents and other caregivers keep open the lines of communication and caring with their child, and reduce the damage that is being done to the child and to the family by substance abuse and related behaviors.
The Network is made up of:
1. A national toll-free telephone helpline at 1-855-DRUGFREE
2. Specific intervention and treatment resources at www.drugfree.org
3. A robust, interactive online parent community
4. Peer-to-peer coaching, offering the desperately-needed insights and support of parents who have “been there” with their own children to parents who are struggling now.
The Partnership’s telephone helpline is staffed during business hours by qualified, bilingual parent support specialists. Our online resources have been developed in collaboration with leading addiction scientists; our peer-to-peer coaches are professionally trained in collaboration with clinicians at the Center for Motivation and Change in New York City, leading practitioners of the CRAFT approach.
The purpose of the Network is to equip parents to play a knowledgeable and complementary role, working in concert with clinicians to achieve better outcomes for kids and families.
The Parents Support Network is a unique and innovative development with the potential to transform the substance abuse field in much the same way that the treatment of autism and other mental health issues has been transformed through the education, collaboration and activism of parents and caregivers.
