Vernon Johnson

{{Short description|American saver of alcoholics (1920–1999)}}

{{about||the American football player|Vernon Johnson (American football)|the American diplomat|Vernon O. Johnson}}

Vernon E. Johnson (August 23, 1920 – April 30, 1999) was an Episcopal priest and recovering alcoholic who devoted his life to a claimed method of alcohol intervention.[http://johnsoninstitute.org/AboutUs/History.aspx A History of the Johnson Institute] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070727021722/http://johnsoninstitute.org/AboutUs/History.aspx |date=July 27, 2007 }} About Us, Johnson Institute, accessed 2007-12-04 Johnson's main achievements lie in the field of treatment of chemical dependency, especially alcoholism. Johnson did not believe that an alcoholic needed to "hit rock bottom" before recovery. He introduced the concept of intervention by family, friends, and employers. He supported "early intervention", because it interrupted the progression of the disease of alcoholism before the disease completely destroyed the alcoholic's life.

Following his own recovery from alcoholism, in 1962 Johnson led a church group concerning alcohol intervention.[http://www.addictionintervention.com/intervention/johnsoninstitute.asp The Johnson Institute] As a Minnesota Episcopal priest, Johnson encouraged the incorporation of faith into the treatment and he convinced many churches to provide space for recovering alcoholics' support group meetings.{{Citation needed|date=December 2007}} Johnson was also a member of faculty of the Rutgers University Summer School for Alcohol Studies.{{Citation needed|date=December 2007}} In 1966, he co-founded (along with Irene and Wheelock Whitney) the Johnson Institute,

[http://www.addictionintervention.com/intervention/johnsoninstitute.asp Irene and Wheelock Whitney Award] which aims to provide early intervention and help employers deal with employee drinking. The institute has also provided training to over 8,000 professionals.[http://www.socialworktoday.com/archive/swt_0105p28.htm Do Drug and Alcohol Interventions Really Work?] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070817130106/http://www.socialworktoday.com/archive/swt_0105p28.htm |date=August 17, 2007 }}

The Johnson Institute uses the "Minnesota Model", which Johnson constructed when he was leading the church group. Johnson's approach, known as a Johnson Intervention, has become the most widespread intervention technique for Alcohol Use Disorders, but critics argue that there is a lack of support for the approach in controlled research and that there is a potential for adverse results.McKillop, J. & Gray, J. (2015) "Controversial Treatments for Alcohol Use Disorders", in Lilienfeld, S.; Lynn, S. & Lohr, J. (eds) Science and Pseudoscience in Clinical Psychology, Second Edition, The Guilford Press. ISBN 978-1462517893 pp 324-326

In 2009, the Johnson Institute transferred its programs and products to the Hazelden Foundation.[http://johnsoninstitute.org/AboutUs/History.aspx A History of the Johnson Institute] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070727021722/http://johnsoninstitute.org/AboutUs/History.aspx |date=July 27, 2007 }}[http://www.jointogether.org/news/yourturn/announcements/2006/johnson-institute-announces.html Johnson Institute Announces Start of Nominations for 2006 America Honors Recovery Luncheon Awards] Johnson also wrote several books about the treatment of chemical dependency, the most famous being I'll Quit Tomorrow. Johnson died in 1999 from cancer.[http://www.wfn.org/1999/07/msg00104.html Vernon Johnson: a pioneer]