Brief Intervention for Illicit Drug Use in Primary Health Care Settings: Does It Work?
Brief intervention (BI) can decrease alcohol consumption among some patients with non-dependent unhealthy use. But does BI have efficacy for illicit drugs? The World Health Organization published the first randomized trial of drug BI among 731 primary-care patients identified with the >70-item Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST). Patients with current cannabis, cocaine, other stimulant, or opioid use were recruited from sexually-transmitted disease and walk-in clinics, a dental clinic, and community primary care sites in Australia, Brazil, the US, and India. Few patients had other drug use (e.g., hallucinogens), but most reported recent tobacco and alcohol use. Patients scoring in the moderate-risk range for drug use were randomly assigned to BI (up to 60 minutes; median, 8–20 minutes) or no BI (until after the study). Patients scoring in either the low- or high-risk range for drug use were excluded. • Brief intervention was associated with a 3-point grea
