Piloting IVR (Interactive Voice Response) for Chronic Pain Treatment

Background: Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has been shown in two meta-analyses to be effective in reducing pain intensity, disability, and affective distress in persons with chronic pain. Although effective, traditional CBT is time-intensive and requires patients to make frequent office visits. An alternative is to improve treatment accessibility and efficiency of treatment provision through the use of electronic methods such as interactive voice response (IVR) technology. Objectives: This pilot project was designed to test the feasibility and perceived value of IVR-based CBT intervention materials for the treatment of chronic pain. The project involved adapting traditional CBT materials for use in a IVR-based chronic pain treatment. Methods: The project occurred in two phases. Phase 1 included the revision of materials to support the IVR-based intervention including 1) a patient handbook, 2) a library of IVR-compatible scripts for the presentation of pain treatment topics, and 3) guidelines for providing personalized feedback. Phase 2 included the evaluation of the developed materials by a small group of patients with chronic pain. After the treatment materials were revised, their usability, feasibility and perceived value were tested with a small sample of Veterans with chronic pain. Status: This study is complete.