skip to main content
Washington State Institute for Public Policy
- Remove
- Remove
- Remove
From To
+ Add new line

Publications

Found 1 results

Wilderness Therapy Programs: Stakeholder Perspectives in Washington
Open Publication PDF

Julia Cramer, Colin Gibson - December 2022

This is the second report in a two-part series focused on wilderness therapy programs. Wilderness therapy combines therapeutic elements with outdoor activities in a natural setting to help support individuals with a range of behavioral, emotional, and substance use issues.

In 2021, the Washington State Legislature directed WSIPP to research wilderness therapy programs in the context of behavioral health treatment and prevention. As part of this assignment, we were asked to assess the “interest and likelihood of support” for wilderness therapy programs among interest groups like “state prevention coalitions and tribes.” We interviewed ten individuals representing a variety of stakeholder perspectives in Washington.

Generally, we found that interview respondents view wilderness therapy as potentially beneficial for the individuals they serve or those who live in their communities. However, we found that most respondents had concerns about cost, safety, access, and the lack of information about programs. Respondents also expressed wanting legislators to be aware of issues related to program flexibility, equitable access, and ongoing outreach if they consider policy decisions related to wilderness therapy in the future.

The first report on this topic was published in June 2022 and can be found here.

Download: Report
Report ID: 22-12-1901
Related:
Legislation

Filter By Topic
Benefit-cost analysis
Cannabis
Children’s services
Criminal justice: Adult corrections
Criminal justice: Juvenile justice
Employment/Welfare
General government
Health care
Higher education
Inventories
Mental health
Pre-K-12 education
Prevention
Public health
Substance abuse
Transportation

Filter By Author
Nathan Adams
Cory Briar
Julia Cramer
Colin Gibson
Rebecca Goodvin
Chasya Hoagland
Bailey Ingraham
Katelyn Kelley
Lauren Knoth-Peterson
Kara Krnacik
Stephanie Lee
Marna Miller
Catherine Nicolai
Amani Rashid
Morgan Spangler
Paige Wanner
Eva Westley
Corey Whichard
(show all authors)