Purpose
The availability of empirically supported clinical practices for the treatment of substance use disorders has increased as research moves from highly-controlled clinical trials to the real world of community treatment settings. The Evidence-Based Practices Substance Abuse (EBP) database and web site is a tool to help treatment providers and policy officials make informed decisions about which evidence-based practices are most appropriate for specific drug problems and individuals.
Criteria for Selection
Practices have published research documenting their effectiveness, and/or are recognized by reputable organizations as evidence-based. Currently, 42 practices are included, most meeting these criteria:
- Research. The practice has been studied in randomized clinical trials, quasi-experimental studies, or in some cases, a less rigorously controlled research design. Research results are published in peer reviewed journals.
- Meaningful outcomes. The practice has resulted in benefits to the individuals receiving the service. It has helped consumers achieve positive outcomes related to treatment goals and objectives.
- Standardization. The practice has been standardized so that it can be replicated. Preference is given to programs which have developed a manual or similar documentation.
- Replication. The intervention has been studied in more than one setting and findings have yielded consistent results.
- Fidelity measure. A fidelity measure either exists or could be developed from available information. Such measures allow practitioners to verify that an intervention is being implemented in a manner consistent with the protocol evaluated in the research.
Search Features
Users can view interventions in a matrix, browse and select by title, or search the database using a variety of descriptors such as population, drug problem, therapy type, and setting. Each entry includes a brief description of the intervention, including implementation issues, references to supporting literature, the availability of instructional manuals and training, developer notes, and other useful information.
Other Features
In addition to the database, the EBP Substance Abuse web site includes abstracts of selected review articles about the effectiveness of evidence-based practices for treating substance abuse, links to web resources for more information, and FAQs (frequently asked questions) about the EBP-Substance Abuse database and related issues.
Target Audience
This database is intended for treatment providers, administrators, and anyone else interested in researching and selecting evidence-based practices for treating substance use disorders.
Future Plans
EBP-Substance Abuse is an expanding resource. As the efficacy and effectiveness of practices are documented, they will be added to the database, and we invite nominations of practices from the treatment and research communities. If salient information about a practice is not included in the database, please let us know. Our goal is to provide a resource that helps treatment providers and policy officials make informed decisions about building effective treatment services.
EBP-Substance Abuse is a project of the University of Washington Alcohol & Drug Abuse Institute and the Northwest Frontier Addiction Technology Transfer Center, funded by DBHR.
Contact: adai@u.washington.edu