Digital Human-Based Brief Interventions for Harmful Alcohol Use: The PAHOLA Project

Summary

Alcohol use disorders are among the most prevalent mental disorders in Canada; however, due to numerous barriers, including fear of treatment, privacy concerns, stigma, time conflicts, and lack of availability of treatment, less than 10% of people with alcohol dependence receive treatment. Accordingly, there is a need to expand treatment coverage for alcohol use disorders, especially for populations which face barriers to receiving treatment.

The objective of this proposed project is to develop a digital health worker, named PAHOLA, which can effectively deliver interventions to people who would not otherwise receive such treatment. To achieve this objective, the following research aims will be addressed:

1. To develop a digital human-based intervention that can initiate change processes and reduce alcohol use by applying the principles of motivational interviewing (MI) and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) in a credible manner.
2. To assess the impact of the virtual care provided by PAHOLA on health outcomes using a randomized controlled study design (RCT) to assess potential effect sizes for a larger future RCT.

If successful, the PAHOLA project has the potential to transform our ability to prevent alcohol-attributable harms in Canada by promoting health, health equity, and well-being, especially among those people who do not normally receive treatment for harmful alcohol use.

Conditions

• Alcohol Drinking
• Alcoholism

Interventions

OTHER

PAHOLA (digital health assistant)

Pahola is the Pan American Health Organization's new digital health specialist on alcohol use. Programmed with the latest information and research, she can help you make healthier decisions related to your alcohol consumption. Pahola is free to use and can easily be accessed from the privacy of your own home by making use of the online app.

OTHER

Standard information on alcohol use and health

A brochure on alcohol use and health as produced by the Pan American Health Organization will be provided to participants.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

  collaborator OTHER_GOV

• Pan American Health Organization

  collaborator OTHER

• Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Kevin Shield · Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

TRIPLE

Model

FACTORIAL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2022-05-01

Primary Completion

2022-05-01

Completion

2022-05-01