What tools are available to assess for alcohol or drug abuse?
The Addiction Severity Index (ASI) is the most widely used measure of problem severity among addicted clients entering treatment. This interview was developed to serve as a standardized and reliable instrument for evaluating drug-abusing clients. The interview is used frequently in both traditional research settings and as an outcome measure in clinical settings. It has been expanded to specialized populations, such as cocaine-abusing mothers, opiate-dependent people, federal prisoners, and homeless people. The ASI covers the client’s medical status, employment and support status, drug use, alcohol use, legal status, family and social relationships, and psychiatric status. Clients are asked to respond to specific questions about the problems they have experienced, both within the past 30 days and over their lifetimes. Thus, both urgent and chronic concerns are identified by ASI. Client answers to the ASI inquiries are summarized into composite scores and are used to measure changes ove
