At a glance
ClinicalIndex Comparison Record- ✓Age over 18 years old
- ✓Dual diagnosis: substance abuse disorder AND (schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, or bipolar I disorder)
- ✓Seeking outpatient treatment at VA
- ✓Physically mobile
- ✕Only mental health diagnosis OR only substance abuse diagnosis (must have both)
- ✕No stable residence post-discharge
- ✕Not medically or psychiatrically stable enough for residential or outpatient treatment
- ✕Exclusive participation in methadone maintenance programs
Standardized by ClinicalIndex from the ClinicalTrials.gov record · verify against the source.
A Brief Community Linkage Intervention for Dually Diagnosed Individuals
In Brief
A clinical study evaluating Time limited case management and Health Education for Schizophrenia and 3 related conditions. Completed, enrolled 102 participants across 2 sites.
Detailed Summary
Surveys suggest that up to 80% of veterans with a persistent mental illness have a co-occurring substance use disorder. Substance abuse among this population is problematic and often results in poor engagement in treatment and thus, frequent hospitalizations and an unstable illness course. Regarding treatment engagement, data from a VA New Jersey facility indicated that 50% of those veterans discharged from the acute psychiatric hospital unit to outpatient care did not attend their initial screening appointment and another 30% dropped out within six weeks. To assist with the transition from inpatient to outpatient care, we previously developed an eight-week augmentation intervention entitled, Time-Limited Case Management (TLC). TLC integrates evidence-based interventions of 1) Dual Recovery Therapy; 2) Critical Time Intervention Case Management along with 3) Peer Support with the goal of assisting individuals with the transition from inpatient to outpatient care.
Study Details
Timeline
Interventions
This group will receive treatment as usual on Acute Psychiatry and at the Day Treatment Center along with an enhanced Time Limited Case Management community linkage intervention (TLC). Patients assigned to TLC will be offered enhanced services that begin on Acute Psychiatry and continue for a total of eight weeks through the community and Day Treatment Center transition.
This group will receive treatment as usual in Acute Psychiatry and at the Day Treatment Center in addition to participating in four group and one individual health education sessions (i.e., the attention control group). The length of the health education sessions (four group sessions and one individual session) will match the amount of attention provided to the treatment group. The health education sessions will cover topics such as nutrition, disease prevention, injury prevention, and healthy aging.