Telehealth Treatment for Veterans with Substance Use Disorders (VetReach Trial)

N/A

Recruiting

Led By Lewei Lin, MD

Research Sponsored by VA Office of Research and Development

Eligibility Criteria Checklist

Specific guidelines that determine who can or cannot participate in a clinical trial

Must have

Be older than 18 years old

Timeline

Screening 3 weeks

Treatment Varies

Follow Up 2 months

Awards & highlights

No Placebo-Only Group

Summary

This trial will test a new way of providing care for veterans with substance abuse disorders, using telehealth to deliver treatment and engagement with the goal of improving outcomes.

Who is the study for?

This trial is for Veterans with Substance Use Disorders who are patients at the Ann Arbor VA Healthcare System. They must have phone access, be able to consent, and have a DSM-5 SUD diagnosis or used substances twice weekly over the past month. It's not for those with severe mental health issues, prior severe alcohol withdrawal symptoms, current SUD therapy, or language barriers.

What is being tested?

The study is testing 'VetReach', a telehealth model designed to improve substance use disorder care for rural Veterans by providing initial engagement and ongoing MI-CBT treatment remotely to increase treatment usage and enhance recovery outcomes.

What are the potential side effects?

Since VetReach is a telehealth service rather than a medication, it doesn't have traditional side effects. However, participants may experience discomfort discussing sensitive topics during remote sessions or technical difficulties with the telecommunication technology.

Timeline

Screening ~ 3 weeks3 visits

Treatment ~ Varies

Follow Up ~ 2 months

Screening ~ 3 weeks

Treatment ~ Varies

Follow Up ~2 months

This trial's timeline: 3 weeks for screening, Varies for treatment, and 2 months for reporting.

Treatment Details

Study Objectives

Study objectives can provide a clearer picture of what you can expect from a treatment.

Primary study objectives

Acceptability of the telehealth intervention

Feasibility of the intervention (engagement)

Other study objectives

Change in frequency of substance use as reported on the Timeline Follow-Back (TLFB)

Change in substance consumption

Awards & Highlights

No Placebo-Only Group

All patients enrolled in this study will receive some form of active treatment.

Trial Design

1Treatment groups

Experimental Treatment

Group I: MI-CBT TeletxExperimental Treatment1 Intervention

The intervention consists of an initial 30-60 min phone-delivered Engagement session that focuses on MI to help participants build self-efficacy and motivation to engage and to empower them to plan change and use Elicit-Provide-Elicit (EPE) to address treatment barriers (e.g., stigma, appeal, accessibility). Participants will then complete up to 8 \~50 minute Teletx weekly sessions via videoconference (or phone if needed). The intervention is highly patient-centered, by meeting and assessing patients where they are including in their unique context (i.e. rural community), helping them identify reasons and motivations for change, and centered around their goals (e.g. substance use reduction or abstinence).

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