A Web-Based Therapeutic Program (We Can Do This) for Reducing Methamphetamine Use and Increasing Help-Seeking Among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People: Protocol for a Randomized Wait-List Controlled Trial

Rachel Reilly^{1

2}, Rebecca McKetin³, Handan Wand⁴, Julia Butt³, Matthew Smout⁵, Nadine Ezard^{6

7}, Katherine Conigrave^{8

9}, Yvonne Clark¹⁰, Brendan Quinn¹¹, Carla Treloar¹², Dennis Gray³, Adrian Dunlop^{13

14}, Yvette Roe¹⁵, James Ward^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Infectious Diseases Aboriginal Health, Aboriginal Health Equity, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, Adelaide, Australia.
² College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, Bedford Park, Australia.
³ National Drug Research Institute, Curtin University, Perth, Australia.
⁴ Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
⁵ School of Psychology, Social Work and Social Policy, University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia.
⁶ National Centre for Clinical Research on Emerging Drugs, St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, Australia.
⁷ University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
⁸ Drug Health Services, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, Australia.
⁹ Discipline of Addiction Medicine, University of Sydney, Camperdown, Australia.
¹⁰ Aboriginal Families Health Research Partnership, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, Adelaide, Australia.
¹¹ Australian Institute of Family Studies, Melbourne, Australia.
¹² Centre for Social Research in Health, Social Policy Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
¹³ School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, Australia.
¹⁴ Drug and Alcohol Clinical Services, Hunter New England Health, Newcastle, Australia.
¹⁵ Molly Wardaguga Research Centre, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Australia.

PMID: 33932278
PMCID: PMC6786845
DOI: 10.2196/14084

A Web-Based Therapeutic Program (We Can Do This) for Reducing Methamphetamine Use and Increasing Help-Seeking Among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People: Protocol for a Randomized Wait-List Controlled Trial

Rachel Reilly et al. JMIR Res Protoc. 2019.

. 2019 Jul 26;8(7):e14084.

doi: 10.2196/14084.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Infectious Diseases Aboriginal Health, Aboriginal Health Equity, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, Adelaide, Australia.
² College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, Bedford Park, Australia.
³ National Drug Research Institute, Curtin University, Perth, Australia.
⁴ Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
⁵ School of Psychology, Social Work and Social Policy, University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia.
⁶ National Centre for Clinical Research on Emerging Drugs, St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, Australia.
⁷ University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
⁸ Drug Health Services, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, Australia.
⁹ Discipline of Addiction Medicine, University of Sydney, Camperdown, Australia.
¹⁰ Aboriginal Families Health Research Partnership, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, Adelaide, Australia.
¹¹ Australian Institute of Family Studies, Melbourne, Australia.
¹² Centre for Social Research in Health, Social Policy Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
¹³ School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, Australia.
¹⁴ Drug and Alcohol Clinical Services, Hunter New England Health, Newcastle, Australia.
¹⁵ Molly Wardaguga Research Centre, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Australia.

PMID: 33932278
PMCID: PMC6786845
DOI: 10.2196/14084

Abstract

Background: Methamphetamine use is of deep concern to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, but access to culturally appropriate treatment resources and services is limited. Web-based programs have potential as flexible and cost-effective additions to the range of treatment options available to Aboriginal people. The We Can Do This online intervention is designed to incorporate evidence-based therapies in a culturally relevant format using narratives from Aboriginal people to contextualize the therapeutic content.

Objective: The goal of the research will be to test the effectiveness of the online intervention in a wait-list controlled randomized trial across multiple sites in urban, regional, and remote locations.

Methods: Participants will be Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 16 years and over who have used methamphetamine at least weekly for the previous 3 months. They will be recruited online and via health services. During the intervention phase, participants will have access to the online intervention for 6 weeks with optional telephone or face-to-face support provided by participating health services. The primary outcome measure will be the number of days the participant used methamphetamine over the past 4 weeks compared to wait-list controls, assessed at baseline, 1, 2, and 3 months. Secondary outcomes will include help-seeking, readiness to change, severity of dependence, and psychological distress. Any important changes to the protocol will be agreed upon by the trial management committee and communicated to all relevant parties, including trial site representatives and the trial registry.

Results: Recruitment will commence in July 2019, and results are expected in early 2021. This research is funded by National Health and Medical Research Council project grant #1100696. The primary sponsor for the trial is the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute. A trial management committee with representation from the participating health services, chief investigators, other Aboriginal experts, and consumers will oversee procedures, trial conduct, analysis, and reporting of the results.

Conclusions: The trial of this online intervention builds on existing research supporting the effectiveness of Web-based therapies for a range of psychological and other health-related issues including substance use. If successful, the We Can Do this online intervention will increase the range of options available to Aboriginal people seeking to reduce or stop methamphetamine use. It may provide a pathway into treatment for people who may otherwise be disengaged with health services for a range of reasons and will be a culturally appropriate, evidence-based resource for health practitioners to offer their clients.

Trial registration: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ACTRN12619000134123p; https://www.anzctr.org.au/ Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=376088&isReview=true.

International registered report identifier (irrid): PRR1-10.2196/14084.

Keywords: Aboriginal health services; Australian Aboriginal people; eHealth; methamphetamine.

©Rachel Reilly, Rebecca McKetin, Handan Wand, Julia Butt, Matthew Smout, Nadine Ezard, Katherine Conigrave, Yvonne Clark, Brendan Quinn, Carla Treloar, Dennis Gray, Adrian Dunlop, Yvette Roe, James Ward. Originally published in JMIR Research Protocols (http://www.researchprotocols.org), 26.07.2019.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of Interest: None declared.

Figures

**Figure 1**
Flow of participants through the We Can Do This trial. AOD: alcohol and other drugs; MH: mental health.

**Figure 2**
We Can Do This launch page.

**Figure 3**
Weighing It Up visual summary.

See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

1. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. 2018. [2019-06-21]. World Drug Report 2018: Executive summary—conclusions and policy implications (Sales No. E. 18.XI) https://www.unodc.org/wdr2018/prelaunch/WDR18_Booklet_1_EXSUM.pdf.
1. Scott N, Caulkins JP, Ritter A, Quinn C, Dietze P. High-frequency drug purity and price series as tools for explaining drug trends and harms in Victoria, Australia. Addiction. 2015 Jan;110(1):120–128. doi: 10.1111/add.12740. - DOI - PubMed
1. National Drug Strategy Household Survey 2016: Drug Statistics Series No 31. Canberra: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare; 2017. [2016-06-21]. https://www.aihw.gov.au/getmedia/15db8c15-7062-4cde-bfa4-3c2079f30af3/21....
1. Degenhardt L, Sara G, McKetin R, Roxburgh A, Dobbins T, Farrell M, Burns L, Hall WD. Crystalline methamphetamine use and methamphetamine-related harms in Australia. Drug Alcohol Rev. 2017 Mar;36(2):160–170. doi: 10.1111/dar.12426. - DOI - PubMed
1. Monahan C, Coleman M. Ice in the outback: the epidemiology of amphetamine-type stimulant-related hospital admissions and presentations to the emergency department in Hedland, Western Australia. Australas Psychiatry. 2018 Aug;26(4):417–421. doi: 10.1177/1039856218762307. - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources

Full Text Sources
Miscellaneous
- NCI CPTAC Assay Portal

Save citation to file

Email citation

Add to Collections

Add to My Bibliography

Your saved search

Create a file for external citation management software

Your RSS Feed

A Web-Based Therapeutic Program (We Can Do This) for Reducing Methamphetamine Use and Increasing Help-Seeking Among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People: Protocol for a Randomized Wait-List Controlled Trial

Affiliations

A Web-Based Therapeutic Program (We Can Do This) for Reducing Methamphetamine Use and Increasing Help-Seeking Among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People: Protocol for a Randomized Wait-List Controlled Trial

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

Conflict of interest statement

Figures

References

LinkOut - more resources

Full Text Sources

Miscellaneous