Search the Library
NOTE: This is a new search platform (as of May 2026). If you do a search and don’t get the results you were expecting, please email us at ctnlib@uw.edu to let us know? (If possible, please share your exact search strategy. Thank you!)
Enter keywords and hit Enter (or click the magnifying glass) to search. You can then also select document type or subject/topic to narrow results further (or just use those for searching without a keyword). Results display below this search form.
Document types
Subjects
- CTN-#### format for protocols (CTN-0001, e.g.)
- “exact phrase” (if phrase is not found, it will return results that contain all terms
- word1 NOT word2
- word1 word2 (finds both words)
- Click title to access full-text
- “Show details” reveals abstract & other info
- Checkboxes select items for copy/pasting or printing
- Need help getting a copy of a journal article?
Email ctnlib@uw.edu
Search results
Teleconferencing Supervision is a method for training community-based substance abuse clinicians in Motivational Interviewing (MI). In this CTN platform study, 13 clinicians recruited from 3 community treatment programs in the Long Island Node of the Clinical Trials Network attended a 2-day workshop and then received live supervision via telephone during 5 counseling sessions conducted at their community treatment facilities. Clinicians were assessed for skill level at post-workshop, at post-training, and 3 months later; learning was assessed using the MI Treatment Integrity instrument. All summary scores and therapist behavior frequency counts improved by post-training or by the 3 month follow-up, although some gains were not statistically significant.
This study suggests that Teleconferencing Supervision may help facilitate the proficient use of MI community clinicians following workshop instruction. By enabling both clinicians and supervisors to participate from their respective home bases, it is hoped that the TCS model will be able to project training to a broader range of community treatment programs.Training research staff to implement clinical trials occurring in community-based addiction treatment programs presents unique challenges. Standardized patient walkthroughs of study procedures may enhance training and protocol implementation. The objective of this study was to examine and discuss cross-site and cross-study challenges of participant screening and data collection procedures identified during standardized patient walkthroughs of multi-site clinical trials. Actors portrayed clients and “walked through” study procedures with protocol research staff (the study completed 57 walkthroughs during implementation of four clinical trials). Observers and walkthrough participants then identified three areas of concern (consent procedures, screening and assessment processes, and protocol implementation) and made suggestions for resolving the concerns.
Conclusions: Standardized patient walkthroughs capture issues with study procedures previously unidentified with didactic training or unscripted rehearsals. Clinical trials within the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network are conducted in addiction treatment centers that vary on multiple dimensions. Based on walkthrough observations, the national protocol team and local site leadership can modify standardized operating procedures and resolve cross-site problems prior to recruiting study participants. The standardized patient walkthrough improves consistency across study sites and reduces potential site variation in study outcomes.
In 2010, the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network (CTN) completed a study designed to evaluate strategies for providing rapid HIV testing in substance use treatment programs (protocol CTN-0032). Counselors from 12 sites across the U.S. were trained to provide on-site rapid HIV testing and a manualized HIV risk reduction counseling intervention based on the RESPECT-2 model (CDC, 2010). The training team was responsible for three aspects of intervention: counselor training, fidelity monitoring, and ongoing counseling supervision. Training occurred in three phases and were audio-taped. Ten percent of the recorded trainings were randomly reviewed by trained fidelity raters to ensure fidelity. To strengthen counselor skills by reinforcing proper techniques and sharing constructive input, the training/supervision team provided real time written feedback to counselors on randomly reviewed sessions. Raters assessed required activities, using a 4-point scale. Audiotapes that average above 1.5 were categorized as “good” and those over 2.5 as “excellent.” Of 198 audiotapes reviewed, 188 (94.9%) were rated “excellent” and the remaining 10 (5.2%) “good.” A subset of 35 audiotapes was reviewed by multiple raters and inter-rater agreement was 97.1%. Through an intensive training implementing a variety of training modalities, substance use counselors with no prior training or experience in HIV risk reduction counseling successfully conducted rapid HIV testing and HIV risk reduction counseling with substance use treatment clients.
Related protocols: CTN-0032
Effective training in psychosocial treatment modalities is critical to maintaining fidelity in both research and practice. This poster reports on the effectiveness of a two-stage training for interventionists participating in a NIDA Clinical Trials Network study, protocol CTN-0047: Screening, Motivational Assessment, Referral, and Treatment in Emergency Departments (SMART-ED). Interventionists at the first two sites initiating the study received a 2-day training in basic Motivational Interviewing skills, followed 1 week later by a 2-day training in the specific counseling intervention used in the trial. They then completed practice sessions with consenting ED patients. Audiotapes of these sessions were reviewed by an expert rater, using the Motivational Interviewing Treatment Integrity scale (MITI, v. 3.1.2) and content checklists. To become certified, interventionists had to score at least 4.0 (“competent”) on the 5-point Global Clinician Rating from the MITI and 80% on content checklists, for 2 out of 3 sessions. Participating interventionists were 5 females and 3 males, 4 of whom were licensed or certified as counselors, with 2 years mean counseling experience (range 0-7). Their self-reported pre-training understanding of MI was moderate (5.5 mean rating on Likert scale 0-9). All participants met criteria for certification after only 2 practice sessions. In conclusion, the two-stage interventionist training used in this study produced excellent results across the first 8 interventionists trained. Focusing first on fundamentals and later on specific intervention content may bestow an advantage for learning and implementing brief interventions based on a motivational interviewing approach.
Related protocols: CTN-0047
This paper discusses a unique collaboration between researchers, addiction community treatment providers (CTPs) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) in developing and implementing a multi-site clinical trial of a behavioral intervention for outpatients with stimulant use disorders. It begins with a description of the overall mission of NIDA’s National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trial Network (CTN), which provided the infrastructure for this study, then continues with details about the study’s adaptation of an combined individual and group intervention aiming to facilitate addicted patients’ active involvement in 12-step mutual support programs, study questions addressed, outcomes of the intervention, and why 12-step counseling approaches should be considered for a multi-site trial. The authors also discuss the structure and format of the STAGE-12 individual and group sessions, and the training and supervision of counselors through review of tapes of treatment sessions.
This process emphasizes the importance of bidirectional collaboration between researchers and treatment providers and shows evidence of how CTPs participate in all phases of a trial, from identifying an important clinical area for research through protocol development and implementation. Because CTPs highly value 12-step counseling interventions, the outcome of CTN-0031 will help inform clinical practice. Results of data analysis from the study will be presented in a future paper.
Related protocols: CTN-0031
This protocol-specific training webinar, hosted by the NIDA Clinical Coordinating Center, provides an overview of the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network (CTN) study, protocol CTN-0048 (Cocaine Use Reduction with Buprenorphine (CURB)). This study is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial designed to examine the safety and effectiveness of buprenorphine in the presence of naltrexone for individuals with cocaine dependence and past-year opioid dependence, past-year opioid abuse, or past-year opioid use with a history of opioid dependence during the participant’s lifetime. The chemical mechanisms of both cocaine and opioids are discussed, along with the effects of withdrawal from both substances. Also included are study participant inclusion/exclusion criteria, a list of the screening assessments that will be used, and information about both buprenorphine and naloxone and the dosing specifics that will be used in the trial itself.
Related protocols: CTN-0048
This 2-hour webinar, produced by the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network (CTN) Clinical Coordinating Center for CTN members and the public, provides methods useful in enhancing community treatment provider workforce stability. Viewers will be introduced to the value of staff continuity; how management, workplace culture, job design, opportunities, rewards and relationship impact staff retention; the importance of the “internal customer;” retention through empowerment and growth; and mentoring recommendations.
The target audience is CTN members and other clinical research staff management.
Presented by Louise F. Haynes, MSW (Medical University of South Carolina, SC Node) and Jack Chally, MBA (EMMES Corporation).
Additional Resources:
- Download slides (pdf)
This 2-hour webinar, produced by the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network (CTN) Clinical Coordinating Center for CTN members and the public, provides information about methods that can be used by community health service clinic staff to ensure clinical research activities are supported by all research site members, including addressing varying stakeholder interests and motivators, team development stages, and communication challenges.
The target audience is CTN members and other researchers and clinicians interested in learning how better to prepare for research buy-in and team building.
Presented by Gregory S. Brigham, PhD (Maryhaven, Inc., OV Node) and Jack Chally, MBA (EMMES Corporation).
Additional Resources:
- Download slides (pptx)
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) established the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network in 1999 with two critical aims: 1) To harness the power of science to determine the effectiveness of drug abuse treatments in real-world community-based settings, and 2) To put these evidence-based findings — as quickly as possible — into the hands of clinicians who could make the best use of them to help their clients/patients.
In recent years, this process has accelerated along three pathways, each of which is described in the poster. The first is the CTN Research Utilization Committee’s (RUC) three workgroups, established to provide training, technical assistance, and support for community treatment program staff to implement CTN findings. The second are Dissemination Workshops convened by the RUC at the two most recent meetings of the CTN Steering Committee, giving the opportunity for attendees to learn from clinical colleagues about their own experiences implementing CTN research. And finally, a series of CTN-supported Regional Dissemination Workshops across the country have been organized and hosted by local Nodes based upon local needs, and provide training in evidence-based treatments to local clinicians, clinical supervisors, and clinic/program managers. The poster also includes a description of the CTN Dissemination Library.
This article describes a standardized patient (SP) walk-through to facilitate implementation of a clinical trial within the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network (CTN). SPs are actors trained to portray a set of symptoms consistently across interactions with multiple clinicians. The Oregon/Hawaii Node of the CTN employed one SP to pilot participant screening processes in a study testing a combined pharmacological and behavioral therapy for women and men dependent on prescription opioid analgesics (CTN-0030, Prescription Opiate Addiction Treatment Study (POATS)). The SP mimicked an individual seeking treatment and “walked” through study intake processes. Findings such as study staff members’ inadequacy in describing issues of patient confidentiality and problems explaining the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act led to modifications to the clinical implementation of the study. Research coordinators and the staff found the use of an SP to be highly effective, and the Node is now making routine use of SPs in the implementation of CTN protocols.
Related protocols: CTN-0030
Standardized patients (SPs) are used in medical education to assist in training and evaluating clinical skills. This poster summarizes the use of an SP to test patient screening and intake processes for two clinical trials conducted in the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network, CTN-0029 (“A Pilot Study of Osmotic-Release Methylphenidate in Initiating and Maintaining Abstinence in Smokers with ADHD”) and CTN-0030 (“Prescription Opioid Addiction Treatment Study (POATS)”). The SP portrayed an individual seeking treatment and “walked” through the study intake process, including being interviewed by research assistants and study medical staff.
The poster describes the SPs and the roles they played in each protocol, then details the observations and suggested procedural changes that emerged as a result. In conclusion, the poster reports that applying SP technology as a pilot of the implementation of clinical trials in substance abuse resulted in positive reactions from research staff. In addition, it provided staff confidence in the study flow and a better understanding of how the data collection would occur when faced with “real” study participants. Due to the success of these pilot implementations, there is evidence to suggest that SP technology could be applied in other settings such as training in a wide range of human services, or testing client responsiveness in treatment and prevention services.
Related protocols: CTN-0029, CTN-0030
To address at least in part health disparities in Hispanic populations, the NIDA Clinical Trials Network implemented the first multi-site randomized clinical trial of substance abuse treatment conducted entirely in Spanish, protocol CTN-0021, “Motivational Enhancement Treatment to Improve Treatment Engagement and Outcome for Spanish-Speaking Individuals Seeking Treatment for Substance Abuse.”
This trial was intended to evaluate the effectiveness of Motivational Enhancement Therapy in a diverse population of Hispanics. In the conduct of this trial, several barriers to the successful implementation of a Spanish-language multi-site trial had to be addressed, including the appropriate translation of assessment instruments, shortage of appropriately trained Spanish-speaking clinical staff, and barriers to recruitment and retention of this population. To encourage similar research, strategies are described in this article that were developed by the study team to meet these challenges.
Related protocols: CTN-0021
Standardized patients (SPs) are used in medical education to assist in training and evaluating clinical skills. This poster summarizes the use of an SP to test patient screening and intake processes for two clinical trials conducted in the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network, CTN-0029 (“A Pilot Study of Osmotic-Release Methylphenidate in Initiating and Maintaining Abstinence in Smokers with ADHD”). The SP portrayed an individual seeking treatment and “walked” through the study intake process, including being interviewed by research assistants and study medical staff. The poster describes the SP and the role he played in the protocol, then details the modifications made to the protocol as the result of his experiences.
In conclusion, the poster reports that applying SP technology as a pilot of the implementation of clinical trials in substance abuse resulted in positive reactions from research and Node staff. In addition, it provided staff confidence in the participant flow and a better understanding of how the data collection would occur when faced with “real” study participants. Due to the success of this pilot implementation, there is evidence to suggest that SP technology could be applied in other settings such as training in a wide range of human services, or testing client responsiveness in treatment and prevention services.
Related protocols: CTN-0029
This seven-page informational brochure provides general guidelines for clinicians and researchers who will be interviewing research participants in the CTN. These guidelines include tips on asking sensitive questions, protecting a participant’s confidentiality and privacy, dealing with a difficult participant, and interviewer safety.
The overall goal of this workshop is to inform providers about emerging findings in the treatment of women with co-occurring trauma and substance use disorders. The workshop is aimed toward clinicians, supervisors and program directors who currently provide treatment for trauma in their substance abuse programs or who are considering integrating these types of services into their program offerings.
|The first presentation in the workshop (Treating Trauma and Addiction: The CTN Women and Trauma Study) includes preliminary findings from Protocol CTN-0015, a study comparing the effects of two manualized interventions for women when added to treatment as usual. The two interventions used, Seeking Safety, a treatment specifically for women with trauma and addictions, and Women’s Health Education, a psychoeducational group focused on health topics of special relevance for women, are described, and baseline characteristics of the sample, including demographics, treatment utilization, substance use history and diagnoses, trauma history and diagnoses and treatment history are presented overall and by site.
|The second presentation, “Training Community Treatment Providers in Research Interventions for Women with Addictions and PTSD,” examines issues involved in training community treatment providers to implement these manualized treatments.
|Finally, in the third presentation, “Women Seeking Safety in Community Treatment Programs,” a program director from one of the community treatment programs that participated in the trial presents clinician, supervisor and administrator perspectives of using the models, as well as the benefits and challenges of doing this type of work in a substance abuse treatment program. Implications for treatment engagement and retention of this population are also discussed.
Related protocols: CTN-0015