A Brief Intervention to Reduce Drinking and Stimulant Use in Psychiatric Patients

A method that uses screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) reduces moderate alcohol use when applied in emergency departments and primary care settings but has not shown efficacy in primary mental health outpatient settings or for other substances, substance use disorders, or alcohol use disorder in most settings. In this rigorous, randomized, controlled trial, researchers at one inpatient and six outpatient mental health clinics recruited individuals with a mood or psychotic disorder and self-reported use of cannabis, stimulants, or one or more heavy drinking days (men, ≥5 drinks; women, ≥4 drinks) in the last 90 days.

The 718 participants, half of whom met criteria for a drug or alcohol use disorder, were randomize…