Building a Summer Treatment Program in the Real World
Sarah A. Tannenbaum, Katie Hart, Simone S. Moody, Vasco M. Lopes, Carla Allan
Abstract
Despite being a well-known evidence-based treatment (EBT) for children with ADHD, the Summer Treatment Program (STP) is only regularly offered at 16 sites, primarily across the United States (US), suggesting dissemination and implementation challenges that limit access for many. With rates of ADHD and co-occurring conditions on the rise and representing a significant cost to our global society, there is a need to improve access and close this research-to-practice gap. There are many barriers to running STPs in the community including the degree of specialization and training required of staff to maintain treatment fidelity, the very small staff to child ratio, as well as the high intensity and long duration of the treatment. To date, there is limited research on and dissemination of adapted STPs that bridge this research-to-practice gap. The goal of this paper is to provide practical steps, assembled from STP Directors across the US, to build an STP in the real world to increase feasibility and accessibility in community settings.