Substance-Related Disorders, Suicidal Ideation, Suicide
Conditions
Keywords
Veterans, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Brief summary
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) intervention compared to a Supportive Psycho-educational Control (SPC) condition in reducing the frequency and intensity of suicidal thoughts and behaviors in Veterans with Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) over a two-year follow-up period.
Detailed description
The project is a multi-site randomized controlled trial of the CBT intervention versus the SPC condition for 300 suicidal Veterans seen in Veterans Health Administration (VHA) intensive outpatient substance treatment programs (SUD IOP). Participants will be screened for current suicidal ideation and other conditions by completing a self-report survey questionnaire. Eligible participants will complete a baseline assessment which will include a self-report survey questionnaire, a research staff administered interview, and a voluntary urine drug screen. Participants will be randomized to either a Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) or Supportive Psycho-education Control (SPC) condition. Both conditions will involve receipt of 8 one-on-one sessions lasting approximately one hour over a period of approximately 3-4 weeks in addition to their standard SUD IOP treatment of care they may be receiving at the VAMC. The intervention is designed to augment their current treatment, not to take the place of current treatment. Participants will be re-assessed immediately after receiving the study interventions (at 1-month) and then again at 3-, 6- 12-, 18-, and 24-month post-intervention follow-ups by completing a series of self-report surveys, researcher administered interviews, and a voluntary urine drug screen. To ensure adequate monitoring of suicidal ideation, additional telephone follow-up assessments will occur 2-, 4-, and 5-months post-intervention.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALCognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
The therapeutic intervention group consists of 8, one-hour individual therapy sessions delivered over the course of 3-4 weeks with a trained CBT therapist. These sessions are designed to provide beneficial coping strategies that are helpful in dealing with both substance use and suicidal thoughts.
BEHAVIORALSupportive Psycho-education (SPC)
This active control condition consists of 8, one-hour individual therapy sessions delivered over the course of 3-4 weeks with a trained therapist. The sessions will provide detailed information about substance use, suicide risk, and depression to those enrolled.
Sponsors
U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command
United States Department of Defense
US Department of Veterans Affairs
University of Michigan
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
DOUBLE (Subject, Investigator)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* Must be 18 years of age or older * Must be a United States Military Veteran * Report current suicidal ideation * Enrolled in outpatient substance abuse treatment within the past month * Must live within 75 miles of treatment site at time of recruitment
Exclusion criteria
* Inability to give informed, voluntary, written consent * Inability to speak and understand English * Receipt of methadone treatment for substance use currently or within the past 6 months * Evidence of active, severe psychotic symptoms * Women who are currently pregnant
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Change in frequency and intensity of suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts | Change over study time period [Baseline, 1-, 3-, 6-, 12-, 18-, and 24-months] | This will be measured using the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale (CSS-RS) and a modified version of the Time Line Follow-Back (TLFB). |
Countries
United States
Outcome results
None listed