What Is a Partial Hospitalization Program?
A partial hospitalization program (PHP) is an outpatient level of care providing structured treatment services during the daytime hours without requiring the client to stay overnight.[1] Often referred to as a partial care program (PCP), PHP is considered to be a more clinically supported service than standard outpatient treatment. This service still allows the client to maintain their current living arrangements, whether that’s their own home or a sober living arrangement, and supports them in learning recovery-related skills.
PHP is different from inpatient treatment. While inpatient treatment is provided in a 24-hour monitored residential or hospital-based setting, PHP provides significant behavioral health treatment during designated programming hours, yet does not require the client to spend the night at the treatment center.
The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) has developed criteria to help in matching people with substance use disorder to the appropriate level of care, considering multiple factors when determining which type of treatment is best suited for each person’s unique needs, risks, strengths, available resources, and support systems.[2] This is important since what type of treatment is best suited for a person is dependent on more than just the substance use diagnosis. Other contributing factors include withdrawal risk, mental health symptoms, relapse risk, environmental living situation, motivation, and the person’s ability to function safely outside of programming hours.












