Facilitating the Adoption of Evidence-Based Depression Management in Substance Use Treatment Programs

Background: Comorbid depression has been consistently linked to worse outcomes for patients in substance abuse treatment programs. Practice guidelines recommend pharmacotherapy for comorbid depression if symptoms persist after a 4-week "wash-out" period for detoxification (e.g., Veterans Health Administration; American Psychiatric Association). Medications may be considered earlier if a patient has current symptoms and a history of major depressive disorder (MDD) during periods of sobriety. Current efficacy data suggest that antidepressant medication can improve both depression and substance use outcomes among comorbid patients Guideline-concordant use of antidepressant medication for persons with comorbid substance use and depressive disorders, however, is not routine in many VA substance abuse treatment settings. Objectives: This study seeks to develop, implement, and test an organizational intervention in VA substance abuse treatment settings to establish guideline-concordant treatment of comorbid depression. The intervention will assist "intervention" programs in their own implementation of a guidelines-based treatment algorithm to improve the recognition of depression and initiation of pharmacotherapy. Methods: Substance abuse treatment programs in the South Central VISN were matched on program characteristics and current depression management practices (n = 4), and "intervention" sites were randomly chosen from each pair. Phase 1 (now completed) of the study analyzed the barriers and facilitators to translation of depression management in participating facilities, and used these data to inform the development of the translation intervention, its implementation tools, and the depression algorithm. The translation intervention adopted in this plan was based on the PRECEDE model of organizational behavior change and included provider education, use of local champions, feedback of screening data, and patient education/activation. The depression management algorithm and intervention was developed with input from programs staff and an Advisory Panel of depression management and translation experts. Phase 2 of the study implemented and tested the intervention. The evaluation in examining program- and provider-level outcomes. Program-level outcomes include feasibility, extent of adoption of the algorithm, and provider/organizational attitudes and beliefs about the intervention's design and effectiveness. Patient-level outcomes include depressive symptoms, substance use outcomes, medication adherence, quality of life, and services use. Status: Phase 1 of the study is complete. Phase 2 is near complete.