Measuring What Really Matters: How We Determine Program Success Rate

By Lisa Kroencke, Chief Executive Officer

At The Magdalen House, our mission is to help women and men achieve sobriety and sustain recovery from alcoholism — at no cost. We believe every person deserves access to a solution that offers more than temporary sobriety. True recovery is about rebuilding lives, restoring families, and creating a thriving community.

We’re often asked, “How do you measure success?”
It’s an important question — because while sobriety can be counted in days, real recovery is measured in restored hope and transformed lives.

Sobriety is the temporary absence of alcohol. Sobriety isn’t the goal; it is only the beginning. For many, the goal of “just staying sober” becomes an exhausting daily battle. The focus remains on not drinking, which can leave a person miserable, restless, and trapped in fear of relapse. In that mindset, life feels smaller, not fuller.

At The Magdalen House, we know that if someone is only trying to stay sober, they’re still trapped by the mental obsession with alcohol. Sobriety focuses solely on not drinking, but doesn’t bring freedom from the obsession and stops with the individual.

Recovery is the removal of the mental obsession with alcohol. It is the point where someone is no longer consumed by thoughts of drinking — or not drinking, when they are able to live freely and with purpose.

Sobriety and recovery are not the same thing. Sobriety stops with the individual, but recovery ripples outward. When one person recovers and helps another, the ripple effect extends far beyond one life — reaching families, workplaces, and entire communities. By sharing the solution with others and giving away what was freely given to you, recovery multiplies, changing hundreds of lives.

Sobriety without transformation is fragile; true recovery lasts a lifetime.

How We Measure Success

Our programs are designed to bring about lasting transformation. So, when we measure outcomes, we look beyond days of sobriety. We measure the quality of life that emerges when someone is truly free.

Six months after completing our program, we assess each client’s success through five key indicators:

• Improvement in family and personal relationships
• Success in education and employment goals
• Increased financial stability
• Improved self-esteem, confidence, and self-respect
• Sobriety — freedom from alcohol

Recovery That Lasts Is the Goal

At The Magdalen House, we don’t just help people stop drinking — we help them recreate their lives. The greatest evidence of our success is seeing women and men lead joyful, purposeful lives, sharing their recovery with others, and creating ripples of hope throughout our community.

Because when one person recovers, countless others are touched by that transformation — and that’s what true success looks like.