TY  - JOUR
AU  - Gliske, Kate
AU  - Welsh, Justine W
AU  - Braughton, Jacqueline E
AU  - Waller, Lance A
AU  - Ngo, Quyen M
PY  - 2022
DA  - 2022/3/14
TI  - Telehealth Services for Substance Use Disorders During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Longitudinal Assessment of Intensive Outpatient Programming and Data Collection Practices
JO  - JMIR Ment Health
SP  - e36263
VL  - 9
IS  - 3
KW  - telehealth
KW  - substance use disorder
KW  - COVID-19
KW  - substance use treatment
KW  - feasibility study
KW  - routine outcome monitoring data
KW  - mental health
KW  - addiction
KW  - digital health
KW  - telemedicine
KW  - outpatient program
KW  - virtual health
KW  - addiction treatment
KW  - virtual care
KW  - patient outcomes
AB  - Background: The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated the rapid transition of many types of substance use disorder (SUD) treatments to telehealth formats, despite limited information about what makes treatment effective in this novel format. Objective: This study aims to examine the feasibility and effectiveness of virtual intensive outpatient programming (IOP) treatment for SUD in the context of a global pandemic, while considering the unique challenges posed to data collection during an unprecedented public health crisis. Methods: The study is based on a longitudinal study with a baseline sample of 3642 patients who enrolled in intensive outpatient addiction treatment (in-person, hybrid, or virtual care) from January 2020 to March 2021 at a large substance use treatment center in the United States. The analytical sample consisted of patients who completed the 3-month postdischarge outcome survey as part of routine outcome monitoring (n=1060, 29.1% response rate). Results: No significant differences were detected by delivery format in continuous abstinence (χ22=0.4, P=.81), overall quality of life (F2,826=2.06, P=.13), financial well-being (F2,767=2.30, P=.10), psychological well-being (F2,918=0.72, P=.49), and confidence in one’s ability to stay sober (F2,941=0.21, P=.81). Individuals in hybrid programming were more likely to report a higher level of general health than those in virtual IOP (F2,917=4.19, P=.01). Conclusions: Virtual outpatient care for the treatment of SUD is a feasible alternative to in-person-only programming, leading to similar self-reported outcomes at 3 months postdischarge. Given the many obstacles presented throughout data collection during a pandemic, further research is needed to better understand under what conditions telehealth is an acceptable alternative to in-person care. 
SN  - 2368-7959
UR  - https://mental.jmir.org/2022/3/e36263
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2196/36263
UR  - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35285807
DO  - 10.2196/36263
ID  - info:doi/10.2196/36263
ER  -