The Involuntary Drug and Alcohol Treatment (IDAT) Program, established under the Drug and Alcohol Treatment Act 2007 of New South Wales, aims to “provide short-term care, with an involuntary supervised withdrawal component, to protect the health and safety of people with severe substance dependence who have experienced, or are at risk of, serious harm and whose decision-making capacity is considered to be compromised due to their substance use”.

This project aims to evaluate the process, outcome and costs of the IDAT Program.

The process evaluation aims to provide descriptive information about the program operations, its reach, patient progression through the defined model of care, and the feasibility and appropriateness of the model of care. The outcome evaluation aims to assess the impact of the IDAT program on a range of patient outcomes including drug and alcohol use and health service utilisation, in comparison with a comparison group. The cost evaluation will determine the costs of the IDAT program.

Research Centre

Social Policy Research Centre

Research Area

Drug Policy Modelling Program

Health Administration Corporation (NSW Ministry of Health)

  • Dr Marian Shanahan (NDARC)
  • Dr Sarah Larney (NDARC)
  • Dr Mark Montebello (Drug and Alcohol Service)
  • Professor Wayne Hall (University of Queensland)

Related people