Attorney at Law Magazine sat down with Dr. Brian Jackson and Diane “Di” McQueen, the founders of Family & Addiction Experts. McQueen is a licensed clinical social worker and has earned the master’s level certified addiction professional credential. She has spent the last 12 years working with addicts and their families. Jackson has worked in addiction treatment at the intensive outpatient level for over 20 years. He is a board-certified addiction professional and certified by the IC&RC.
AALM: What circumstances led you to your career in addiction counseling?
Jackson: I struggled with my own addictions and decided to get help. I checked into a Betty Ford Center in February 2000. After discharge, I went to an intensive outpatient program at the Greenfield Center at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Jacksonville. I developed an interest in becoming a counselor and began my career at the Greenfield Center. I returned to school and got my doctorate of addictive disorders degree. I developed a passion for working with people with alcohol and substance use disorders.
McQueen: I had been in recovery for some time. My husband of 10 years started using drugs. It quickly got out of control. After several attempts to try to get him well, it became apparent he was not interested in stopping. It became overwhelming for me and after some time I realized family members really struggle with this and need help of their own. I moved to Florida to start a new life and decided to get a master’s degree in social work at FSU. I then started in the field of addiction and mental health. I felt my past experience could be of service to both the addict and the family who was struggling with a loved one.
AALM: How did you come to serve as an expert witness?
McQueen: Dr. Jackson encouraged me to partner with him on an evaluation doing the psychological portion of the evaluation. It became evident to us that dual diagnosis was prevalent in most people with addiction. We also realized we made a great team looking at the person with different lenses.
Jackson: After years of doing substance use evaluations, attorneys and the court would ask me to testify as to the results and recommendations of the evaluation. This has been helpful in being able to explain to the court the rationale behind my conclusions and recommendations and answer any questions that a judge might have to assist in his/her decisions.
AALM: How did you come to work together and found Family & Addiction Experts?
Both: We worked together for years and developed a professional respect for each other. We often observed that there was a void in the addiction community for family resources. Based on our education and experience we felt that we would be of value to the courts to perform evaluations for substance use disorders, psychological and competency assessments.
AALM: How does your personal experience with addiction better prepare you to work with your clients?
McQueen: It allows me to be truly empathetic based on my own experiences. It also helps me to understand that they need support and education. Our motto is “we lived it, we learned it, and now we teach it to you.” We teach our clients effective tools to live their lives with emotional freedom from the prison of addiction that permeates themselves and their family.
Jackson: As a person who has been in recovery for 25 years, it is my experience that revealing this fact to people coming in for an evaluation, makes them more at ease. It also helps me understand where they are in their illness. This helps us formulate a treatment plan that will help them get well and stay well.
AALM: Brian, you specialize in providing substance use evaluations. Can you tell us a little about this?
Jackson: The evaluations are all encompassing. There is a biopsychosocial evaluation, drug testing, objective testing and review of collateral information that are crucial to form a conclusion and recommendation. This can assist the court in determining custody in family law cases and assigning punishment in criminal cases.
AALM: Diane, you provide psychological and competency evaluations in family, criminal and civil court. Can you tell us a little bit about that type of work?
McQueen: A large percentage of the people with a substance use disorder also have co-occurring psychological issues. I find that many people self-medicate these underlying issues with substances of abuse. It is critical that these underlying issues are addressed in a clinical setting. The goal is to manage these conditions without the use of substances and learn how to live life on life’s terms.
AALM: Over the course of your careers, do you believe the outlook on addiction has shifted in the judicial system? What changes do you see evolving in the future?
Both: We have seen an increasing interest in the court’s understanding that people with a substance use disorder are not bad people trying to become good people. Rather they are open to suggestions for rehabilitation with the hope that people can change their lifestyles through treatment and education.
AALM: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself outside the office?
McQueen: I am engaged and have been with my fiancé for 16 years. I love the outdoors and try to be outside walking the beach, hiking a mountain, biking, kayaking as much as possible. I love spending time with my family, animals, and especially my children. I am involved in the recovery community and enjoy every minute of life. I also love the theatre, the arts and traveling.
Jackson: I am married and have two children and two beautiful grandchildren who I love spending time with. I am active in the AA community and have a strong network of sober friends. I enjoy golfing, swimming, and hanging out with my yorkie, Luna.
AALM: Anything else you’d like to add?
Both: We hope that the judicial system will apply not only punishment and restitution but consider rehabilitation as part of their decisions. We truly believe this would reduce the rate of recidivism and potential jeopardy of children. We would encourage both substance use evaluations and psychological evaluations together so there is a comprehensive picture of the person.
