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SBIRT for Pain Management in Substance Use Disorders

N/A
Waitlist Available
Led By Marc Rosen, MD
Research Sponsored by Yale University
Eligibility Criteria Checklist
Specific guidelines that determine who can or cannot participate in a clinical trial
Must have
Be older than 18 years old
Must not have
Received three or more non-pharmacological pain treatment modalities within the last 12 weeks from VA
Timeline
Screening 3 weeks
Treatment Varies
Follow Up 36 weeks
Awards & highlights
No Placebo-Only Group

Summary

This trial will test whether a Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment for pain management can help Veterans reduce pain and substance misuse.

Who is the study for?
This trial is for post-9/11 veterans who are applying for compensation due to musculoskeletal conditions, have moderate to severe pain (scoring ≥4 on a pain scale), and own a phone. It's not open to those unable or unwilling to participate, those already receiving multiple non-drug pain treatments from the VA, or participants in another related study.
What is being tested?
The SBIRT-PM program is being tested for its effectiveness in reducing chronic pain and risky substance use among veterans. The program involves clinicians contacting veterans by phone across New England as part of a pragmatic randomized clinical trial.
What are the potential side effects?
Since this intervention involves counseling rather than medication, typical drug side effects aren't expected. However, discussing sensitive topics like substance use and pain might cause emotional discomfort.

Eligibility Criteria

Exclusion Criteria

You may be eligible for the trial if you check “No” for criteria below:
Select...
I have tried three or more non-drug pain treatments from the VA in the last 3 months.

Timeline

Screening ~ 3 weeks
Treatment ~ Varies
Follow Up ~36 weeks
This trial's timeline: 3 weeks for screening, Varies for treatment, and 36 weeks for reporting.

Treatment Details

Study Objectives

Study objectives can provide a clearer picture of what you can expect from a treatment.
Primary study objectives
Change in number of Problem Substances measured by the Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST)
Cost-Effectiveness Acceptability curves (CEACs)
Cost-Effectiveness Ratios (ICERs)
+1 more
Secondary study objectives
Individual substances of misuse generated by the ASSIST
Overall Health measured by EQ-5D-5L
Pain Interference subscale of Brief Pain Inventory
+1 more

Awards & Highlights

No Placebo-Only Group
All patients enrolled in this study will receive some form of active treatment.

Trial Design

2Treatment groups
Experimental Treatment
Active Control
Group I: SBIRT-PMExperimental Treatment1 Intervention
Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment for Pain Management (SBIRT-PM) was developed to promote engagement in multi-modal non-pharmacological pain management among compensation-seeking Veterans with chronic pain. In SBIRT-PM, a clinician meets with the Veteran after the compensation examination to address the presenting MSD complaint. The clinician addresses Veterans' motivation for multi-modal pain care, and explains how pain can be managed using a variety of non-pharmacological pain management services. The clinician spells out how those services can be accessed at VA. Using permissive language about how pain is commonly self-medicated with substances, the clinician transitions to inquiries about use of prescription and non-prescription substances. The clinician then attempts to motivate Veterans to change their behavior if they are misusing substances. Thus, SBIRT-PM addresses the Veteran's presenting pain complaint first and nascent substance use subsequently.
Group II: Usual CareActive Control1 Intervention
A Veteran who completes a Compensation examination ordinarily has no further treatment, referral or debriefing as part of the Compensation examination. Veterans will be advised that they should continue to pursue whatever counseling they need outside the study.
Treatment
First Studied
Drug Approval Stage
How many patients have taken this drug
SBIRT-PM
2014
N/A
~160

Find a Location

Who is running the clinical trial?

National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)NIH
853 Previous Clinical Trials
670,640 Total Patients Enrolled
35 Trials studying Pain
20,569 Patients Enrolled for Pain
Yale UniversityLead Sponsor
1,919 Previous Clinical Trials
3,039,255 Total Patients Enrolled
16 Trials studying Pain
4,050 Patients Enrolled for Pain
US Department of Veterans AffairsFED
873 Previous Clinical Trials
496,741 Total Patients Enrolled
13 Trials studying Pain
1,867 Patients Enrolled for Pain
~183 spots leftby Nov 2025