Efficacy of Community Reinforcement Approach (CRA) in the Treatment of Cannabis Users

Summary

Substance abuse is not a new phenomenon in Pakistan. Its prevalence is increasing day by day due to multi-factorial reasons including psychological, cultural, biological, environmental, social and personal factors. Recent statistics shows an alarming increase in the use of substance. The last survey conducted indicates there are 3.6 million substance users in Pakistan and 3.6 percent among them are cannabis users. Furthermore, cannabis is found to be the most prevalent abused drug with adverse impact on the mental health among university students in Pakistan. However, there is a dearth of literature which could indicate a well-established treatment policy with proven efficacy model available in Pakistan. This study aims to investigate the efficacy of Community Reinforcement Approach (CRA) as evidence based remedy for Cannabis Users. The study is designed in a Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) consisting of groups: Active Treatment (AT; with nine sessions of CRA intervention) and Treatment as Usual (TAU; routine treatment). After screening and baseline, participants will be assigned to the either Active Treatment group or Treatment As Usual group. Participants in both groups will be assessed on completion of third month after randomization (Outcome assessment), six months after randomization (first follow-up), and finally ninth months after randomization (second follow up). The primary outcome measure will be the frequency of usage, abstinence period and quantity of cannabis by using Timeline Follow Back Interview. The duration of the study is two and half years

Conditions

• Cannabis Dependence

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Community Reinforcement Approach

Community Reinforcement Approach (CRA) as an intervention consisting of nine sessions (each session consists of 45-minutes). Treatment is primarily based upon the guidelines by Robert Meyers and William Miller (2001). The techniques included in the sessions are functional analysis, sobriety sampling, behavioral skills, and relapse prevention techniques. The first three sessions of the intervention are based upon rapport building, induction of the rationale of CRA and Functional analysis of usage and non-usage behavior.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Pakistan Institute of Living and Learning

  collaborator OTHER

• International Islamic University, Islamabad

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Muhammad Tahir Khalily, PhD · International Islamic University, Islamabad

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

30 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2019-08-18

Primary Completion

2021-07-30

Completion

2021-12-21

Countries

• Pakistan

Study Locations