Evaluating American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) Dimension Assessment As an Outcome Measure: A Pilot Study With Substance Abusing Adolescents in Two Matched Residential Treatment Centers

American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) dimension assessment is extensively used as admissions criteria into most accredited inpatient and intensive outpatient addictions treatment programs. No refereed journal articles exist within existing professional counseling literature addressing the efficacy of using the ASAM dimension assessment addiction outcome measures. This study evaluated ASAM dimension assessment as an effective outcome evaluation with substance abusing adolescents in two residential treatment centers. Results suggest ASAM dimension assessment can be an effective outcome evaluation, and regular ASAM evaluation updates elicit positive treatment outcomes among substance abusing youth.