Festinger, D. S., Lamb, R. J., Kirby, K. C., & Marlowe, D. B. (1996). The accelerated intake: A method for increasing initial attendance to outpatient cocaine treatment. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 29, 387-389.

We examined whether offering an accelerated (same-day) versus a standard (1- to 7-day delay) intake appointment increased initial attendance at an outpatient cocaine treatment program. Significantly more of the subjects who were offered an accelerated intake (59%) attended than those who were given a standard intake (33%), (chi)2 (2, N = 78) = 4.198, p < .05. The accelerated intake procedure appears to be useful for enhancing enrollment in outpatient addiction treatment.

DESCRIPTORS: drug abuse treatment, adherence, appointment keeping, call-appointment interval