At a glance
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Developing and Implementing an Online Relapse Prevention Psychotherapy Program for Patients With Alcohol Use Disorder
In Brief
A clinical study evaluating Online relapse prevention therapy and Face to face relapse prevention therapy for Alcohol Use Disorder. Completed, enrolled 60 participants across 1 site.
Detailed Summary
Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is characterized by problematic alcohol use accompanied by clinically significant distress. This disorder is associated with high relapse rates, with one in five patients remaining abstinent 12 months post-treatment. Traditional face-to-face relapse prevention treatment (RPT) is a form of cognitive behavioural therapy that examines one's situational triggers, maladaptive thought processes, self-efficacy, and motivation, however access to this treatment is frequently limited due to its high cost, long waitlists, and inaccessibility. Thus, an online adaptation of RPT (e-RPT) could address these limitations by providing a more cost-effective and accessible delivery method for mental health care in this population. This study aims to establish the first academic e-RPT program to address AUD in the general population. We will recruit adult participants (n = 60) with a confirmed diagnosis of AUD. Then, these participants will be randomly assigned to receive ten sessions of e-RPT or face-to-face RPT. e-RPT will consist of 10 predesigned modules and homework with asynchronous personalized feedback from a therapist. Face-to-face RPT will consist of 10, one-hour long face-to-face sessions with a therapist. The predesigned modules and the face-to-face sessions will present the same content and structure. Self-efficacy, resilience, depressive symptomatology, and alcohol consumption will be measured through various questionnaires at baseline, week 5, and week 10. Outcome data will be assessed using linear and binomial regression (continuous and categorical outcomes respectively). Qualitative data will be analyzed using thematic analysis methods.
Study Details
Timeline
Interventions
Participants in the e-RPT group will receive 10 weekly predesigned online modules. The content of this program will involve interactive therapy modules based on the principles of. On average each module consists of 30 slides and should take approximately 45 minutes to complete. At the end of each module, participants will be assigned homework to be completed and submitted to their respective therapists up to 48 hours before their next weekly session. The therapists will develop personalized feedback by using session-specific therapy feedback templates. These templates ensure that feedback is also more standardized and structured between different patients and therapists. In previous studies, therapists have been able to effectively use these templates to prepare feedback in approximately 15-20 minutes. The contents of each session are outlined on the detailed description section.
Participants in the face-to-face intervention will meet with their therapist weekly through Microsoft Teams (video conference). During these 1-hour sessions, therapists will follow the same 10-week structure and content as e-RPT. Though compared to e-RPT, in face-to-face sessions, the homework will be reviewed with the participant, during the session, providing the appropriate feedback. Then the therapists will prepare a weekly patient report of each session for the principal investigator. At the end of each session, participants will receive the same homework as the e-RPT condition which they will receive feedback on during the following face-to-face session. Following the 10-week face-to-face intervention, participants will have the opportunity to join the e-RPT program.