Vernon E. Johnson was an Episcopal priest and recovered alcoholic who devoted his life to alcohol intervention. Johnson's main achievements lie in the field of treatment of chemical dependency

Physical dependence

Physical dependence refers to a state resulting from chronic use of a drug that has produced tolerance and where negative physical symptoms of withdrawal result from abrupt discontinuation or dosage reduction...

, especially alcoholism

Alcoholism

Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...

. 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. As an Minnesota

Minnesota

Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...

 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. Dr. Johnson was also a member of faculty of the Rutgers University

Rutgers University

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...

 Summer School for Alcohol Studies. In 1966, he co-founded (along with Irene and Wheelock Whitney) the Johnson Institute, which aims to provide early intervention and help employers deal with employee drinking. The institute has also provided training to over 8,000 professionals.

To this day, the Johnson Institute uses the "Minnesota Model", which Johnson constructed when he was leading the church group. (It now has offices in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

, Austin

Austin, Texas

Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...

, and Minneapolis. 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

Cancer

Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...

.

Published books

• I'll Quit Tomorrow- First published in 1973 by Harper & Row Publishers, ISBN 0-06-250433-9

Seven editions have been published to date.

• Intervention, how to help someone who doesn't want help : a step-by-step guide for families and friends of chemically dependent persons

First published in Minneapolis, Johnson Institute Books, 1986. ISBN 0-935908-31-5 Five editions have been published to date.

• Everything You Need to Know about Chemical Dependence: Vernon Johnson's complete guide for families

First published in Minneapolis : Johnson Institute, 1990, ISBN 0-935908-31-5 Two editions have been published to date.

• God, Help Me to Be Me: Spiritual Growth During Recovery

First published in Minneapolis, Johnson Institute, 1991. ISBN 0935908897

• Behavior Vs. Values: Character Conflict During Recovery

First Published in Minneapolis, Johnson Institute, 1991. ISBN 0-935908-88-9

• Alcoholism and the church: A call to action

First published in New York : Episcopal Church. Church Pension Fund, 1979

External links

• Johnson Institute official website