Clinics Integrating Digital Therapeutics for Alcohol Use Should Expect High Demand

While strategies for integrating digital therapeutics for alcohol use disorder into primary care could generally follow those for digital therapeutics for substance use disorder, providers should be prepared for increased patient demand, according to a study published in Addiction Science & Clinical Practice.

“Alcohol use disorder is indeed more prevalent than substance use disorder in the United States overall and in primary care,” wrote corresponding author Jessica M. Mogk, MPH, of Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute, Seattle, Washington, and study coauthors. “One multisite study estimated that 13.9% of primary care patients had past-year alcohol use disorder, which was approximately double that of other individual drug use disorders (eg, 7.4% cannabis, 5.1% cocaine, 3.3% heroin, and 2.4% prescription opioids).” 

Researchers interviewed 16 clinicians, care delivery leaders, and implementation staff from Kaiser Permanente Washington about integrating digital therapeutics for alcohol use disorder into primary care. They were interested in lessons learned from previous digital therapeutic implementation efforts, which included apps for substance use disorder, depression, and anxiety.

“Participants were enthusiastic about digital therapeutics for alcohol use disorder, anticipated high patient demand for such a resource, and made suggestions for successful implementation,” the authors reported. 

To accommodate high patient volume, interviewees offered varied recommendations, such as training all care team staff on the app to avoid workflow bottlenecks or, on the other hand, designating a specific clinician to help connect patients to the app. Others suggested allowing patients to access the app on their own without having to go through a clinician. Another tip advised scheduling designated chunks of time dedicated to helping patients with technical issues, monitoring app use, and other related tasks, according to the study.

“The approach for connecting patients to digital therapeutics for alcohol use disorder must be tailored to accommodate the anticipated high patient volume while minimizing the workload burden of busy care teams,” the authors wrote. “Digital therapeutics and their delivery should also be tailored to meet the needs of patients with varying alcohol use disorder severity.”

Reference:
Mogk JM, Matson TE, Caldeiro RM, et al. Implementation and workflow strategies for integrating digital therapeutics for alcohol use disorders into primary care: a qualitative study. Addict Sci Clin Pract. 2023;18(1):27. doi:10.1186/s13722-023-00387-w