Improving Substance Use Services for Juvenile Justice-Involved Youth: Complexity of Process Improvement Plans in a Large Scale Multi-site Study.

Despite the high prevalence of substance use disorders among juvenile offenders, most do not receive services. System-level process improvement plans to address unmet service needs can be optimized by combining data-driven decisions and facilitated meetings with behavioral health stakeholders. This paper operationalizes and analyzes the level of specified complexity among process improvement plans evident within 36 juvenile probation and drug courts across 7 states. To inform more effective implementation strategies, this analysis identifies and prioritizes promising courses of agency enhancement toward addressing unmet substance use needs.