Management Practices to Enhance the Effectiveness of Substance Use Disorder Treatment

Managers of substance use disorder (SUD) treatment organizations face significant challenges to improve treatment effectiveness. The field has paid significant attention to the delivery of pharmacological and psychosocial treatment interventions, and the effectiveness of these interventions, with little consideration for the role of management practices that enhance the delivery of such evidence-based practices (EBPs). This chapter describes evidence-based management practices (EBMPs) that may support the effective and consistent delivery of EBPs in SUD treatment. Drawing from a socio-technical and cultural framework, we propose a management approach that relies on policies, human resources, and culturally responsive practices to directly and or indirectly facilitate the delivery of EBPs. In particular, this chapter describes EBMPs that could be widely implemented to respond to the cultural, linguistic, and service needs of racial and ethnic minority groups. We discuss implications for funding and support of management training to improve standards of care and include a case example to promote reflection.