Implementing Evidence-Based Mental Health Practices in Primary Care

This research study will examine the effectiveness of a brief, computerized motivational
intervention plus treatment-as-usual to treatment-as-usual alone for treating alcohol misuse
in Veterans presenting to primary care. The investigators aim to recruit 162 Veterans
screening positive on the AUDIT-C to participate in this study. Participants will be
randomly assigned to one of the two intervention conditions and be asked to complete a
baseline assessment and two follow-up assessments conducted at three and six months post
treatment. Baseline assessments will be conducted in person by a trained research assistant,
while all follow-up interviews will be conducted over the phone. The primary outcome for
this clinical trial is the reduction in the number of heavy drinking days. Several secondary
outcomes will be collected including health status, depressive symptoms, consequences of
drinking, pain symptoms, and distress tolerance. The findings from this study may have large
scale implications for how alcohol misuse is treated in primary care. In addition, this
study will provide evidence for the feasibility of using the computer as a method for
delivering evidence-based mental health interventions in primary care.