Regular outpatient treatment is mostly a less expensive alternative to more comprehensive outpatient options or inpatient rehabilitation, and is the least intense of formal alcohol or drug treatment around in Bell. Some individuals are in treatment for their first time and have chosen regular outpatient because that is all they can afford and commitment to time wise and scheduling because of work, school or other obligations. For many, regular outpatient is a "step-down" to service following treatment in a more intense outpatient facility such as a partial hospitalization or in-patient program.
Regular out-patient treatment options offer individual and group counseling services delivered once or twice a week. Centers which offer a more diverse array of services may include counseling (behavioral therapy) to assist with relapse prevention and dual-diagnosis services to help respond to co-occurring addiction and mental health issues. How long someone stays involved in rehab can vary, and a person's progress can be judged every now and then and an extension of rehab can be suggested contingent upon these findings.
In many situations, a regular outpatient rehab facility may be insufficient in intensity for an individual who is facing a severe alcohol and drug issue and has never gone to treatment before or has relapsed following previous outpatient rehab.