National Survey on Drug Use and Health: 2014 and 2015 Redesign Changes [Internet]

Excerpt

Background: Information on survey content and survey continuity (e.g., disparity between the survey measures or methodology across years) is an important output of major federal surveys because it affects the availability of data and the analytic possibilities. This report presents a summary of the impact of a redesign of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) sampling methodology in 2014 and a partial redesign of the questionnaire and data collection procedures in 2015.

Method: This report describes changes in the 2014 and 2015 NSDUHs that were designed to increase the efficiency of data collection and processing and to improve the quality of the data collected. In 2014, changes were made in the sample sizes allocated to each state and to different age groups in order to increase the precision of national and many state estimates as well as estimates for older adults. In 2015, changes were made to the survey questionnaire to improve the quality of the data collected, expand the number of prescription drugs covered, and address changing substance use and mental health policy and research needs.

Results: The 2014 changes to the sample design are expected to result in more precise national estimates overall and more precise estimates for older adults. The 2015 changes are expected to improve the quality of data, and the questionnaire revisions will address SAMHSA's substance use and mental health policy and research needs.

Conclusion: Despite the changes in 2014 and 2015, the survey will continue to use the same basic procedures for identifying people to be interviewed (sampling) and for completing surveys with these people (data collection), while improving data quality and survey efficiency.