Other Services

National Substance Abuse Program

Correctional Service Canada (CSC) has developed the National Substance Abuse Program (NSAP) which is part of a larger drug strategy designed to effectively intervene and manage substance abuse behaviour and related problems.  Many of the staff at St. Leonard’s Society of Toronto have been trained to deliver this program on a contract basis for CSC.

The NSAP program was developed to assist offenders to modify their substance abuse and criminal behaviours. The strategies included in the program were selected to prepare the offenders to better manage those situations that initiate a relapse into crime and/or substance misuse.  NSAP is founded on an integrated theoretical model which posits that patterns of substance abuse have multiple determinants and can be explained, in part, by learning principles. Substance abuse is a maladaptive response to ongoing problems in living.  Behaviour is initiated and maintained by past learning experiences including peer modeling, reinforcement contingencies, cognitive expectations or beliefs, and biological influences. Therefore, if substance abusing behaviours are learned, then the same processes can be used to assist the individual to develop more adaptive cognitive and behavioural coping responses. The Service's substance abuse treatment model offers a range of treatment programs that vary in intensity and are designed to be matched with offenders' substance abuse severity to enhance treatment effectiveness.