Smartphone-based secondary prevention intervention for university students with unhealthy alcohol use identified by screening: study protocol of a parallel group randomized controlled trial

Bertholet, Nicolas; Schmutz, Elodie; Grazioli, Véronique S.; Faouzi, Mohamed; McNeely, Jennifer; Gmel, Gerhard; Daeppen, Jean‐Bernard; Cunningham, John A.

doi:10.1186/s13063-020-4145-2

Cited by 8 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 55 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The protocol for this secondary prevention, parallel group, randomised controlled trial was registered and published before the trial began 37. The trial was monitored independently by Lausanne University Hospital’s Clinical Trial Unit.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of a smartphone intervention as a secondary prevention for use among university students with unhealthy alcohol use: randomised controlled trial

Bertholet

Schmutz

Studer

et al. 2023

BMJ

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Objective To estimate the effects of providing access to an alcohol intervention based on a smartphone. Design Randomised controlled trial.. Setting Four higher education institutions in Switzerland. Participants 1770 students (≥18 years) who screened positive for unhealthy alcohol use (ie, a score on the alcohol use disorders identification test-consumption (AUDIT-C) of ≥4 for men and ≥3 for women) were randomly assigned by 1:1 allocation ratio in blocks of 10. Intervention Providing access to a brief, smartphone based alcohol intervention. Outcome measures The primary outcome studied was number of standard drinks per week at six months and the secondary outcome was number of heavy drinking days (past 30 days). Additional outcomes were maximum number of drinks consumed on one occasion, alcohol related consequences, and academic performance. Follow-up assessments occurred at months three, six, and 12. Data were analysed by intention to treat and by using generalised linear mixed models with random intercepts for the recruitment site and participants nested within the recruitment site, and with intervention ( v control), time (three months v six months; 12 months v six months), and baseline outcome values as fixed effects. Results Between 26 April 26 2021 and 30 May 2022, 1770 participants (intervention group (n=884); control group (n=886)) were included. Mean age was 22.4 years (standard deviation 3.07); 958 (54.1%) were women; and 1169 (66.0%) were undergraduate students, 533 (30.1%) were studying for a master’s degree, 43 (2.4%) were studying for a doctorate, and 25 (1.4%) were students of other higher education programme. The baseline mean number of standard drinks per week was 8.59 (standard deviation 8.18); the baseline number of heavy drinking days was 3.53 (4.02). Of 1770 participants, follow-up rates were 1706 (96.4%) at three months, 1697 (95.9%) at six months, and 1660 (93.8%) at 12 months. Of 884 students randomly assigned to the intervention group, 738 (83.5%) downloaded the smartphone application. The intervention had a significant overall effect on the number of standard drinks per week (incidence rate ratio 0.90 (95% confidence interval 0.85 to 0.96)), heavy drinking days (0.89 (0.83 to 0.96)), and the maximum number of drinks consumed on one occasion (0.96 (0.93 to 1.00), P=0.029), indicating significantly lower drinking outcomes in the intervention group than in the control group during the follow-up period. The intervention did not affect alcohol related consequences or academic performance. Conclusions Providing access to the smartphone application throughout the 12 month follow-up was effective at limiting the average drinking volume of university students who had self-reported unhealthy alcohol use at baseline. Trial registration ISRCTN 10007691.

show abstract

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of a smartphone intervention as a secondary prevention for use among university students with unhealthy alcohol use: randomised controlled trial

Bertholet

Schmutz

Studer

et al. 2023

BMJ

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“… 32 , 33 However, many PWUD experience barriers to engaging with treatments programs (i.e., ineligibility for addiction services due to abstinence protocols or waitlists due to limited capacity). 32 , 33 Alternative approaches need to be considered for persons who are not ready or interested in treatment and abstinence. To this end, mobile apps are being developed and implemented to assist in providing remote care for PWUD.…”

Section: What Role Do Digital Strategies Play In Providing Care To People Who Use Drugs?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…31 Several examples demonstrate how online services can be used to provide individuals with addiction treatment. 32,33 However, many PWUD experience barriers to engaging with treatments programs (i.e., ineligibility for addiction services due to abstinence protocols or waitlists due to limited capacity). 32,33 Alternative approaches need to be considered for persons who are not ready or interested in treatment and abstinence.…”

Section: What Are the Health Impacts Of Covid-19 On People Who Use Dr...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Developing a digital health strategy for people who use drugs: Lessons from COVID-19

et al. 2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

COVID-19 has significantly exacerbated negative health and social outcomes for people who use drugs (PWUD) around the world. The closure of harm reduction services, ongoing barriers to employment and housing, and pre-existing physical and mental health conditions have increased harms for diverse communities of PWUD. Adapting current models of health and human service delivery to better meet the needs of PWUD is essential in minimizing not only COVID-19 but also drug-related morbidity and mortality. This article draws on research, practice, and advocacy experiences, and discusses the potential for digital health tools such as remote monitoring and telecare to improve the continuum of care for PWUD. We call for a digital health strategy for PWUD and provide recommendations for future program development and implementation.

show abstract

“…We are conducting a larger mixed methods study aiming to develop and test a smartphone app for unhealthy alcohol use among tertiary students through a randomized trial [ 16 ]. This paper presents the development of the smartphone app targeting unhealthy alcohol use.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development of a Secondary Prevention Smartphone App for Students With Unhealthy Alcohol Use: Results From a Qualitative Assessment

et al. 2023

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Despite considerable efforts devoted to the development of prevention interventions aiming at reducing unhealthy alcohol use in tertiary students, their delivery remains often challenging. Interventions including information technology are promising given their potential to reach large parts of the population. Objective This study aims to develop a secondary prevention smartphone app with an iterative qualitative design involving the target population. Methods The app development process included testing a first prototype and a second prototype, developed based on the results of 2 consecutive qualitative assessments. Participants (aged ≥18 years, screened positive for unhealthy alcohol use) were students from 4 tertiary education institutions in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Participants tested prototype 1 or prototype 2 or both and provided feedback in 1-to-1 semistructured interviews after 2-3 weeks of testing. Results The mean age of the participants was 23.3 years. A total of 9 students (4/9 female) tested prototype 1 and participated in qualitative interviews. A total of 11 students (6/11 female) tested prototype 2 (6 who tested prototype 1 and 5 new) and participated in semistructured interviews. Content analysis identified 6 main themes: “General Acceptance of the App,” “Importance of the Targeted and Relevant App Content,” “Importance of Credibility,” “Importance of the App Usability,” “Importance of a Simple and Attractive Design,” “Importance of Notifications to Ensure App Use over Time.” Besides a general acceptance of the app, these themes reflected participants’ recommendations toward increased usability; to improve the design; to include useful and rewarding contents; to make the app look serious and credible; and to add notifications to ensure its use over time. A total of 11 students tested prototype 2 (6 who tested prototype 1 and 5 new) and participated in semistructured interviews. The 6 same themes emerged from the analysis. Participants from phase 1 generally found the design and content of the app improved. Conclusions Students recommend prevention smartphone apps to be easy to use, useful, rewarding, serious, and credible. These findings may be important to consider when developing prevention smartphone apps to increase the likelihood of app use over time. Trial Registration ISRCTN registry 10007691; https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN10007691 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) RR2-10.1186/s13063-020-4145-2

show abstract

Smartphone-based secondary prevention intervention for university students with unhealthy alcohol use identified by screening: study protocol of a parallel group randomized controlled trial

Cited by 8 publications

References 55 publications

Effect of a smartphone intervention as a secondary prevention for use among university students with unhealthy alcohol use: randomised controlled trial

Effect of a smartphone intervention as a secondary prevention for use among university students with unhealthy alcohol use: randomised controlled trial

Developing a digital health strategy for people who use drugs: Lessons from COVID-19

Development of a Secondary Prevention Smartphone App for Students With Unhealthy Alcohol Use: Results From a Qualitative Assessment

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About