Improving Substance Abuse Counseling Adherence Using Web-based Videoconferencing

This research is being done to compare the effectiveness of standard on-site, in-person counseling with Internet web-based videoconferencing (e-therapy) in drug-dependent patients in opioid-agonist treatment programs. The study is looking to see if there are any differences in satisfaction or in treatment outcome if counseling sessions are given by e-therapy compared to standard, in-person counseling given in the clinic. The e-therapy happens in real time- it works very much like standard therapy in the clinic except that the patient is in his or her own home (or other convenient location outside the clinic) and talks to and sees the therapist through an Internet connection on the computer (the therapist will usually be at the clinic).

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Substance Abuse Disorder
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: eGet

Detailed Description

This study will be the first to evaluate the efficacy of an accredited and currently available, Internet web-based videoconferencing platform to deliver routine schedules of counseling in an opioid agonist treatment program. It has outstanding potential to help determine transportability of this technology to other treatment programs by demonstrating the benefits of integration of web-based therapy with on-site services to expand the continuum of care.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 85
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Maryland
    • Baltimore, Maryland, United States, 21224
      • Addiction Treatment Services

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 65 years (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Access to a computer with Internet capability
• Full adherence to their routine counseling schedule over the previous 30-days
• Negative urine specimens over the previous 30-days
• Patient at ATS for 90 days

Exclusion Criteria:

• No access to a computer with Internet capability

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Health Services Research
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Internet (eGetgoing); Subjects will assigned to use an accredited web-based platform (eGetgoingTM, CRC Health Group, Inc.) to deliver routine substance abuse counseling.	Behavioral: eGet; eGet individual counseling sessions from home will be scheduled weekly for 12 weeks.
No Intervention: Routine on-site; Subjects will attend routine face-to-face individual counseling sessions.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Counseling efficacy	Attendance to individual counseling sessions, both online and on-site will be tracked weekly for the duration of the study.	Weekly for 12 weeks
Reinforcement value (eGetgoing)	Subjects will complete monthly surveys to evaluate the reinforcement value of eGetgoing using a multiple choice design that will compare its perceived value to other aspects of routine treatment (e.g., take-home medications).	Monthly for 3 months
Reinforcement value (on-site)	Subjects will complete a survey to evaluate the reinforcement value of eGetgoing using a multiple choice design that will compare its perceived value to other aspects of routine treatment (e.g., take-home medications).	Baseline

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Program Satisfaction	Subjects will complete a survey to assess their overall program satisfaction	Baseline and monthly for 3 months
Treatment cost	Subjects will complete surveys to measure treatment related time and monetary travel costs.	Baseline and Month 3
Therapeutic relationship	Subjects and their therapists will complete surveys to assess qualities of the therapeutic relationship.	Baseline and monthly for 3 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Johns Hopkins University
• Collaborators: National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Van King, M.D., Johns Hopkins University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: December 1, 2009
• Primary Completion (Actual): August 1, 2012
• Study Completion (Actual): August 1, 2012

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: June 10, 2010
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 10, 2010
• First Posted (Estimate): June 11, 2010

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): April 4, 2013
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 2, 2013
• Last Verified: April 1, 2013

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: methadone; Web based videoconferencing; substance abuse counseling
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Mental Disorders; Chemically-Induced Disorders; Substance-Related Disorders
• Other Study ID Numbers: 1RC1DA028189-01 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)