In 2012, a specialist Alcohol and Other Drug Treatment Court (AODT Court) was established to:
- reduce reoffending, alcohol and other drug consumption and dependency, and the use of imprisonment
- positively impact on health and wellbeing
- be cost-effective.
In 2016, an evaluation of the AODT Court was undertaken to assess the operation and operation against the intended outcomes. The evaluation consisted of:
- a document review
- AODT Court administrative data
- interviews or group discussions with 23 AODT Court participants (including current, exited and graduated participants) and six whānau members
- interviews or group discussions with 64 stakeholders associated with the AODT Court.
Purpose
The purpose of the final process evaluation was to assess the actual operation of the Alcohol and Other Drug Treatment Court (AODT Court) against the intended design and its evolution to inform the interpretation of programme outcomes.
Methodology
The process evaluation draws on a mixed-method data collection approach. The project plan outlines the objectives, methodology, and timeframe of the final process evaluation (Litmus 2016). Below is a summary of the data collection methods used.
Interviews with AODT Court participants
In total, 23 AODT Court participants were interviewed in April 2016. Participants interviewed were a mix of gender, age, ethnicity, offence type (EBA or not EBA5), and court. Six whānau members of AODT Court participants were interviewed.
All interviews followed an informed consent process and adhered to Litmus’ interview safety policy. The project plan and progress report detail the recruitment process used (Litmus 2016, 2016a). The technical report contains the research tools (Litmus 2016b).
Interviews with AODT Court team members and key informants
A total of 33 AODT Court team members and key informants participated in individual interviews, and 31 people participated in six group discussions, in April 2016. In the report, AODT Court team members and key informants are referred to collectively as stakeholders. All interviews followed the agreed recruitment and informed consent processes (Litmus 2016, 2016a,b).
AODT Court administrative data
AODT Court administrative data show the flow and demographic profile of participants through the AODT Court pathway. The ministry’s Research and Evaluation Team analysed the administrative data to a specification prepared by Litmus. The JAX data cover the period from November 2012 to 13 April 2016, with the exception of AOD testing which is up to May 2015.
Evaluation caveats
The Litmus team is confident that this report accurately represents the range of views and perceptions of the participants, whānau and stakeholders who contributed to the evaluation. In considering the findings for the process evaluation, some caveats are acknowledged. AODT Court participants interviewed were identified by case managers, peer support workers and Te Pou Oranga. Sample selection bias is therefore possible. Victims were not included in the evaluation. Insights into victims’ perspectives of the AODT Court are provided by Court Victim Advisors and police prosecution. The ministry put in place quality assurance processes to minimise data entry and analysis errors in relation to the JAX data.