Treatment of Homosexual Alcoholics in Government-Funded Agencies: Provider Training and Attitudes

Alcoholism treatment providers in 36 government-funded agencies in New York City were surveyed for information about their training for and attitudes toward the treatment of homosexual patients. The 164 respondents had limited knowledge about how to evaluate and treat homosexual alcoholics and frequently did not discuss sexual orientation with their clients even though they considered it important. The training and supervision of most providers in the treatment of alcoholic homosexual clients was substandard or nonexistent. About half of the providers believed that treatment programs would benefit from having openly gay staff and felt that being openly gay carried little professional risk. Respondents also reported that development of programs for homosexual alcoholics had little priority in their facilities. Many believed that homosexual alcoholics are less likely to seek help and may have more difficulty achieving sobriety.