Dataset Information

Health Care Utilization After Paraprofessional-administered Substance Use Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment: A Multi-level Cost-offset Analysis.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:Authorities recommend universal substance use screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) for all (ie, universal) adult primary care patients. OBJECTIVE:The objective of this study was to examine long-term (24-mo) changes in health care utilization and costs associated with receipt of universal substance use SBIRT implemented by paraprofessionals in primary care settings. RESEARCH DESIGN:This study used a difference-in-differences design and Medicaid administrative data to assess changes in health care use among Medicaid beneficiaries receiving SBIRT. The difference-in-differences estimates were used in a Monte Carlo simulation to estimate potential cost-offsets associated with SBIRT. SUBJECTS:The treatment patients were Medicaid beneficiaries who completed a 4-question substance use screen as part of an SBIRT demonstration program between 2006 and 2011. Comparison Medicaid patients were randomly selected from matched clinics in Wisconsin. MEASURES:The study includes 4 health care utilization measures: outpatient days; inpatient length of stay; inpatient admissions; and emergency department admissions. Each outcome was assigned a unit cost based on mean Wisconsin Medicaid fee-for-service reimbursement amounts. RESULTS:We found an annual increase of 1.68 outpatient days (P=0.027) and a nonsignificant annual decrease in inpatient days of 0.67 days (P=0.087) associated with SBIRT. The estimates indicate that the cost of a universal SBIRT program could be offset by reductions in inpatient utilization with an annual net cost savings of $782 per patient. CONCLUSIONS:Paraprofessional-delivered universal SBIRT is likely to yield health care cost savings and is a cost-effective mechanism for integrating behavioral health services in primary care settings.

SUBMITTER: Paltzer J

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6690790 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Health Care Utilization After Paraprofessional-administered Substance Use Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment: A Multi-level Cost-offset Analysis.

Paltzer Jason J Moberg David Paul DP Burns Marguerite M Brown Richard L RL

Medical care 20190901 9

<h4>Background</h4>Authorities recommend universal substance use screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) for all (ie, universal) adult primary care patients.<h4>Objective</h4>The objective of this study was to examine long-term (24-mo) changes in health care utilization and costs associated with receipt of universal substance use SBIRT implemented by paraprofessionals in primary care settings.<h4>Research design</h4>This study used a difference-in-differences design and ...[more]

PMID: 31295165

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundScreening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) for risky substance use is infrequently included in routine healthcare in low-resourced settings. A SBIRT programme, adopted by the Western Cape provincial government within an alcohol harm reduction strategy, employed various implementation strategies executed by a diverse team to translate an evidence-based intervention into services at three demonstration sites before broader programme scale-up. This paper evaluates the implementation of this programme delivered by facility-based counsellors in South African emergency centres.MethodGuided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, this mixed methods study evaluated the feasibility, acceptability, appropriateness and adoption of this task-shared SBIRT programme. Quantitative data were extracted from routinely collected health information. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 40 stakeholders in the programme's second year.ResultsIn the first year, 13 136 patients were screened and 4 847 (37%) patients met criteria for risky substance use. Of these patients, 83% received the intervention, indicating programme feasibility. The programme was adopted into routine services and found to be acceptable and appropriate, particularly by stakeholders familiar with the emergency environment. These stakeholders highlighted the burden of substance-related harm in emergency centres and favourable patient responses to SBIRT. However, some stakeholders expressed scepticism of the behaviour change approach and programme compatibility with emergency centre operations. Furthermore, adoption was both facilitated and hampered by a top-down directive from provincial leadership to implement SBIRT, while rapid implementation limited effective engagement with a diverse stakeholder group.ConclusionThis is one of the first studies to address SBIRT implementation in low-resourced settings. The results show that SBIRT implementation and adoption was largely successful, and provide valuable insights that should be considered prior to implementation scale-up. Recommendations include ensuring ongoing monitoring and evaluation, and early stakeholder engagement to improve implementation readiness and programme compatibility in the emergency setting.

Project description:BackgroundIn a large randomized trial examining ethnic differences in response to a brief alcohol intervention following an alcohol-related injury, we showed that Hispanics, but not non-Hispanics, were more likely to reduce alcohol intake in comparison with treatment as usual (Addiction 105:62, 2010). The current study evaluates whether the observed improvements in drinking outcomes previously reported among Hispanics following brief intervention might be related to prior or subsequent treatment utilization.MethodsThis study is a secondary analysis of data collected in a randomized clinical trial that evaluated ethnic differences in the effect of a brief motivational intervention (BMI) on alcohol use among medical inpatients admitted for alcohol-related injury. For this study, statistical analyses were carried out to compare alcohol use, alcohol problems, treatment utilization, and unmet treatment need between Hispanic (n = 537) and non-Hispanic White (n = 668) inpatients. In addition, we examined the relationship between prior treatment utilization and unmet treatment need and alcohol use outcomes following brief intervention and the impact of brief intervention on subsequent treatment utilization and unmet treatment need.ResultsIn comparison with non-Hispanic Whites, Hispanics at baseline reported heavier drinking, more alcohol problems, greater unmet treatment need, and lower rates of treatment utilization. Among Hispanics, multilevel analyses showed that prior treatment utilization or unmet treatment need did not moderate the effect of BMI on alcohol outcomes. Furthermore, BMI did not significantly impact subsequent treatment utilization or unmet treatment need among Hispanics. Finally, treatment utilization and unmet treatment need at 6 months were not significant mediators between BMI and alcohol use outcomes at follow-up.ConclusionsThe benefits of brief intervention among Hispanics do not appear to be better explained by subsequent engagement in mutual help groups or formal substance abuse treatment. Prior history of treatment, regardless of the severity of alcohol problems, does not appear to influence the impact of brief intervention on alcohol use among Hispanics. These findings support prior results reporting the benefits of brief intervention among Hispanics and demonstrate that these improvements are not related to prior or subsequent treatment utilization.

Project description:BackgroundDepression is a leading cause of disability worldwide. African American adults, compared to White adults, are half as likely to be screened for depression in primary care settings. Disparities in depression screening contribute to poor clinical outcomes, as African Americans with depression are more disabled and sicker longer compared to Whites. African American churches are trusted settings that provide access to supports for depression. Indeed, in the first study of its kind, the investigators found that 20% of adults in African American churches screened positive for depression using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). However, no subjects with a positive screen (PHQ-9 ≥ 10) accepted a treatment referral when offered by research personnel. Community Health Workers, who are trusted paraprofessionals from the target community, may bridge the gap between depression screening and treatment. The investigators have trained and certified 112 Community Health Workers from 45 African American churches in New York City to deliver an evidence-based intervention called Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT). Thus, the aim of the current study is to test the impact of Community Health Worker-delivered depression screening in Black churches on engagement with clinical services.MethodsUsing a hybrid type 1 effectiveness-implementation design, we propose a 2-arm, mixed-methods cluster randomized controlled trial. Church study sites will be randomized to either SBIRT (intervention arm) or referral as usual (usual care arm). This trial will be conducted with 600 church members across 30 churches (300 intervention; 300 usual care). Our primary outcome is treatment engagement, defined as attending a depression-related clinical visit. Secondary outcomes will be changes in Mental Health-Related Quality of Life and depressive symptoms at 3 and 6 months post-screening. Lastly, we will conduct a concurrent, mixed-methods (qualitative-quantitative) process evaluation to assess contextual facilitators and barriers of screening and referral.DiscussionThis is the first randomized trial of a church-placed, community health worker-delivered intervention for depression in African American populations. This study may provide a novel and effective approach to increasing depression identification and treatment linkage in economically disadvantaged populations with high depression rates.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT04524767 . Registered on 21 August 2020.

Dataset Information

Health Care Utilization After Paraprofessional-administered Substance Use Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment: A Multi-level Cost-offset Analysis.

Publications

Health Care Utilization After Paraprofessional-administered Substance Use Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment: A Multi-level Cost-offset Analysis.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure