Impact of Combined Recovery Program and Home Telehealth Among Veterans With Substance Use Disorders in the VA Inpatient Setting
VA Office of Research and Development
Summary
The purpose of this study is to evaluate how well three types of treatments work to improve the outcomes for people with substance use problems. Veterans admitted to the Charleston VA Psychiatric inpatient unit may be invited to participate. The three types of treatments that will be evaluated are: 1. Combined Recovery Program (CRP), a six-session treatment group delivered on the inpatient unit. 2. A Home Telehealth program, called Stable and Able (S\&A), provided just prior to discharge and provides additional support for up to 3 months 3. Treatment-as-usual (TAU), which is the treatment currently provided on the unit, consisting of various mental health topics and sessions designed to help with recovery. Participation begins on the inpatient unit, beginning with CRP and/or TAU, and may continue with S\&A post discharge. Participants will be followed up at 1 and 3- months post treatment.
Description
Background: High inpatient readmissions among Veterans with substance use disorders (SUD) constitutes a costly and persistent healthcare problem. Studies demonstrate that patients with SUDs return to inpatient treatment multiple times and that high inpatient service utilization in this population is associated with high rates of co-occurring mental illness (SUD/MI), homelessness, suicidality, and continued impairment in health and social functioning. A significant proportion (21%) of Veterans with SUD/MI are homeless, at high-risk for suicide, and represent one of the largest, most chronic gr…