Treatment Groups VS. Support Groups

Hope’s Garden is not a treatment facility and thus is non-clinical in nature. The following describes our view on what differentiates support groups from treatment groups.

Treatment Groups are clinical in nature to the extent that:

• The facilitator holds more responsibility for the welfare of individual group members and the nature and outcome of the group
• Participants can expect help in gaining insight into the causes of their own problems and patterns of communication between group members.
• The focus is more on meeting individual needs and detailed personal exploration within the context of the group
• Confidentiality is sacred and information obtained about group members stays within the group

Support Groups are non-clinical in nature to the extent that:

• The individual participant is responsible for welfare of self. If the group is overwhelming, it is the individual’s responsibility to seek outside treatment.
• Participants can expect information, coping strategies and peer support.
• The focus is more on meeting the general needs of the group around a theme
• Confidentiality is sacred and information obtained about group members stays within the group.

Support groups at Hope’s Garden are offered as an adjunct to treatment. They complement or supplement existing outpatient and hospital-based programs to the extend that they can encourage treatment where needed and serve as a place where gains made in treatment can be consolidated and maintained through providing peer support and information.