Collaborative Care Shows Promise for Opioid and Alcohol Use Disorders

A NIDA-funded randomized clinical trial found that primary care patients with opioid and alcohol use disorders (OAUD) who were offered a collaborative care intervention were more likely to receive evidence-based treatment and refrain from using opioids and alcohol six months later, compared to patients receiving usual care.

The collaborative care intervention increased both the proportion of patients receiving evidence-based treatment for OAUD (39.0% vs. 16.8%) and the number refraining from opioids or alcohol use at six months. (32.8% vs. 22.3%).

Collaborative care was designed to increase the delivery of either a six-session brief psychotherapy treatment, and/or medication-assisted treatment, with either buprenorphine/naloxone for opioid use disorders or long-acting injectable naltrexone for alcohol use disorders. Usual care participants were given a number for appointment scheduling and a list of community referrals for OAUD treatment.

The authors suggest the findings indicate that treatment for OAUDs can be integrated into primary care settings effectively.

For a copy of the paper go to — "Collaborative Care for Opioid and Alcohol Use Disorders in Primary Care: The SUMMIT Randomized Clinical Trial"— published in JAMA Internal Medicine.