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Background: It is well documented that individuals with Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) respond well during evidencebased psychological treatment, but also that a large proportion relapses when discharged from treatment and confronted with alcohol in real life. Cue Exposure Treatment (CET) focuses on exposing individuals to alcohol cues in order to reduce cravings as well as the likelihood of relapse. The aims of the study are: 1) to investigate whether CET aftercare delivered via a smartphone or in group sessions increases the effect of Cognitive Behavioural Treatment in groups of alcohol dependent individuals; 2) to investigate whether CET as a smartphone application is as or more effective than CET group therapy, and 3) to investigate whether CET as a smartphone application is more cost-effective than CET group aftercare and Aftercare as Usual. Design and methods: The study will be implemented as an investigator-blinded randomized controlled trial. A total of 300 consecutively enrolled alcohol use disorder individuals recruited from an alcohol outpatient clinic will be randomized into one of the three following aftercare groups after concluding primary treatment: (1) CET as a smartphone application; (2) CET as group therapy, and (3) Aftercare as Usual. It is hypothesized that the two experimental groups will achieve better treatment outcomes compared to the control group (3). Discussion: Individuals in the CET groups are given the opportunity to practise coping strategies during exposure to alcohol stimuli before being unavoidably confronted with alcohol and associated stimuli in real life. Thus, CET may help prevent patients from relapsing after concluding treatment, and in the long term. Moreover, the CET application has the potential to improve AUD treatment and continuing care by offering psychological treatment whenever and wherever the patient finds it convenient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: A large proportion of the Danish population consumes more than the officially recommended weekly amount of alcohol. Untreated alcohol use disorders lead to frequent contacts with the health care system and can be associated with considerable human and societal costs. However, only a small share of those with alcohol use disorders receives treatment. A referral model to ensure treatment for alcohol dependent patients after discharge is needed. This study evaluates the i) cost-effectiveness ii) efficacy and iii) overall impact on societal costs of the proposed referral model - The Relay Model.Method/design: The study is a single-blind pragmatic randomized controlled trial including patients admitted to the hospital. The study group (n = 500) will receive an intervention, and the control group (n = 500) will be referred to treatment by usual procedures. All patients complete a lifestyle questionnaire with the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test embedded as a case identification strategy. The primary outcome of the study will be health care expenditures 12 months after discharge. The secondary outcome will be the percentage of the target group, who 30 days after discharge, reports at the alcohol treatment clinics. In order to analyse both outcomes, difference-in-difference models will be used.Discussion: We expect to establish evidence as to whether The Relay Model is either cost-neutral or cost-effective, compared to referral by usual procedures.Trial Registration: https://register.clinicaltrials.gov/by identifier: RESCueH_Relay NCT02188043 Project Relay Model for Recruiting Alcohol Dependent Patients in General Hospitals (TRN Registration: 07/09/2014). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The proportion of 60+ years with excessive alcohol intake varies in western countries between 6–16 % among men and 2–7 % among women. Specific events related to aging (e.g. loss of job, physical and mental capacity, or spouse) may contribute to onset or continuation of alcohol use disorders (AUD). We present the rationale and design of a multisite, multinational AUD treatment study for subjects aged 60+ years. Methods/Design: 1,000 subjects seeking treatment for AUD according to DSM-5 in outpatient clinics in Denmark, Germany, and New Mexico (USA) are invited to participate in a RCT. Participants are randomly assigned to four sessions of Motivational Enhancement Treatment (MET) or to MET plus an add-on with eight sessions based on the Community Reinforcement Approach (CRA), which include a new module targeting specific problems of older adults. A series of assessment instruments is applied, including the Form-90, Alcohol Dependence Scale, Penn Alcohol Craving Scale, Brief Symptom Inventory and WHO Quality of Life. Enrolment will be completed by April 2016 and data collection by April 2017. The primary outcome is the proportion in each group who are abstinent or have a controlled use of alcohol six months after treatment initiation. Controlled use is defined as maximum blood alcohol content not exceeding 0.05 % during the last month. Total abstinence is a secondary outcome, together with quality of life and compliance with treatment. Discussion: The study will provide new knowledge about brief treatment of AUD for older subjects. As the treatment is manualized and applied in routine treatment facilities, barriers for implementation in the health care system are relatively low. Finally, as the study is being conducted in three different countries it will also provide significant insight into the possible interaction of service system differences and related patient characteristics in prediction of treatment outcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This paper is embedded in a randomised controlled trial (Alcohol and Employment) that investigated whether welfare-to-work schemes combined with alcohol treatment were more effective than welfare-to-work schemes alone for helping unemployed welfare recipients with alcohol problems get back to employment and reduce their alcohol problems. The implementation of Alcohol and Employment turned out to be challenging, and fewer welfare recipients than expected were enrolled. The aim of this paper was to identify and investigate obstacles to the implementation of Alcohol and Employment. Our main objective was to study the job consultants' role in the implementation process as they were key personnel in conducting the trial. Methods: The process evaluation was conducted in four Danish municipalities in 2011-2012. Data for identifying factors important for the implementation were collected through observations and focus group interviews with job consultants. Data were analysed thematically and thoroughly discussed among members of the project team; emerging themes were then grouped and read again repeatedly until the themes were consistent. Results: Three themes emerged as the main factors influencing the degree of implementation of Alcohol and Employment: (1) The job consultants' personal attitudes toward alcohol were an important factor. The job consultants generally did not consider a high alcohol intake to be an impediment to employment, or they thought that alcohol problems were only symptoms of more profound problems. (2) The job consultants' perception of their own roles and responsibilities in relation to the welfare recipients was a barrier: they felt that addressing alcohol problems and at the same time sustaining trust with the welfare recipient was difficult. Also, they did not consider alcohol problems to be their responsibility. (3) Shortage of time and resources among the job consultants was determined to be an influential factor. Conclusions: We identified important factors at the individual level among the job consultants who threatened the implementation of Alcohol and Employment. Future studies in similar settings can take advantage of these findings when preparing interventions that are implemented by job consultants or similar professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes the design, implementation, and evaluation of a clinical pathway system in a two-cohort quasi-experimental study before and after implementation, controlling for confounders. The main outcome measures were retention in care and sensible alcohol use (defined as abstinent or drinking no more than 21 standard drinks per week). Patients with harmful alcohol use or dependence as their primary problem who were seeking psychosocial treatment at one of four alcohol clinics in Denmark participated in the study. After implementation of the clinical pathway system, which incorporated a structured intake, a referral and independent follow-up system, checklists, audit, and feedback, there was no change in length of stay, but significantly more patients had a good clinical outcome (stopped or moderated their consumption) at the end of treatment (OR = 1.9; 1.2-3.1). The study documents the feasibility of using a clinical pathway framework, incorporating a local monitoring system, checklists, audit, and feedback to enhance treatment quality and improve outcomes for alcohol use disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]