A person who represents the rights and interests of another individual in order to realize the rights to which the individual is entitled, obtain needed services, and remove barriers to meet the individual’s needs.

A high-intensity, community-based service which supports a person's independence, rehabilitation, and recovery in order to avoid unnecessary hospitalization and homelessness.

The process of interviewing a person to find out about their background, mental health status, education and work history, family and marriage difficulties, and medical issues to better understand their needs.

A term used to refer to mental health and substance use disorders.

Helping people get the GHS services they need and support from their community, family, and friends to make sure that their needs are met.

Matching a person with a guide to services.

Illnesses that can be treated and cured. Symptoms are often strong and sudden.

Illnesses that can be treated but cannot be cured. Symptoms may vary between being strong and sudden to weak and long-lasting.

Services aimed to improve or maintain self-sufficiency in areas such as meal preparation, laundry, shopping, and household and personal care.

The rules and laws that protect a person's information that must not be told to anyone else either in writing, speaking, or inferrance. Permission from the person must be sought before any information can be shared. Specific laws can be found in 42 CFR, Part 2 and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

Long-lasting access to services and care that helps people in recovery.

A term used when a person has both a mental health disorder and a substance use disorder. Both disorders should be treated together.

A professional helping relationship that begins with the client exploring the way they think, how they feel, and what they do for the purpose of enhancing their life.

Electronic version of a medical record or chart. Sharing the use of the same electronic medical record by several service providers helps to coordinate care.

Increasing and supporting a person or group's ability to make their own decisions and choices, and act on these to create the outcomes they want.

Clinical and service practices that have scientific support for their effectiveness.

A network of service providers who delivers coordinated and comprehensive care that is patient-centered and delivers excellent quality and safety. These providers typically share information by using an electronic medical health record.

A person who guides those receiving services throughout their course of care, using their direct knowledge of the local community to understand the fears and hopes of individuals and remove barriers to effective care by coordinating services.

A form of person-centered planning that helps a person identify and achieve their goals.

A client-centered counseling style which helps people recognize differences between their beliefs and their actions and take steps to change.

A person in recovery who has been trained to use their personal history to share hope and provide support to others on their own journey of recovery.

A process for planning and support driven by the individual receiving services that honors the individual’s preferences, choices, and abilities.

A highly individualized journey of healing and transformation where the person gains control over his/her life. It involves the development of new meaning and purpose, growing beyond the impact of addiction or a diagnosis. This journey may include the pursuit of spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical well-being.

NAMI's Definition: Recovery is the point in someone's illness in which the illness is no longer the first and foremost part of his or her life, no longer the essence of all his or her existence.

An individual who links the recovering persons to the community, serves as a personal guide or mentor in the process of personal and family recovery, and helps remove personal and environmental obstacles.

A residence or facility that offers a safe, drug-free housing environment for recovering individuals. This facility does not provide treatment.

A coordinated network of community-based services and supports that is person-centered and builds on the strengths and resilience of individuals, families, and communities to achieve abstinence and improved health, wellness, and quality of life for those with or at risk of alcohol and drug problems.

The process of returning to patterned thoughts and behaviors, and/or active substance use after a period of stability. Relapse is considered to be part of the recovery process and a component of a chronic disease, and should be viewed as an opportunity for learning.

Services that are provided in a full or partial residential setting where individuals reside while receiving services. Such services may be supplemented with diagnostic services, counseling, vocational rehabilitation, work therapy, or other services that are judged to be valuable to clients in a therapeutic setting.

The right of a person to choose their own actions.

Social discrediting because of a characteristic, behavior, or reputation.

The process by which recovering people share their experience with others as acts of self-healing and service. Telling one's story can be a means of inspiration and used as a method of reducing stigma.

Refers to the overindulgence in and dependence on a drug or other chemical, leading to effects that are detrimental to the individual's physical and mental health and/or the welfare of others.

An individual’s continued use of alcohol or other drugs despite problems related to use of the substance. Compulsive and repetitive use may result in tolerance to the effect of the drug and withdrawal symptoms when use is reduced or stopped.

Those disorders in which repeated use of alcohol and/or other drugs cause negative consequences. Substance dependence and substance abuse are both considered substance use disorders.

A recovery plan developed with the individual, based on the identified individualized needs of the person.

A term generally used to mean a healthy balance of the mind, body and spirit, which results in an overall feeling of well-being. Additionally, it is considered an active process of becoming aware of and making choices toward a more successful and fulfilling life.