Alcohol and Other Substance Use Research Education Programs for Health Professionals (R25 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)

161st Meeting of the National Advisory Council on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NCAA), September 8, 2022 (October 2022 Council)

Re-issue of PAR 19 207

Participating IC’s: NIAAA, NIDA

Authors: Laura Kwako, NIAAA, Albert Avila, NIDA

Purpose: The NIH Research Education Program (R25) supports research education activities in the mission areas of the NIH. The over-arching goal of this NIAAA/NIDA R25 program is to support educational activities that foster a better understanding of biomedical, behavioral, and clinical research on alcohol and other substance use disorders and their implications.

Scope of the Education Program: To accomplish the stated over-arching goal, this NOFO will support creative educational activities with a primary focus on Outreach. Specifically, this NOFO will support projects designed to engage practicing health care professionals in education about current and emerging knowledge derived from scientific research on biomedicine, neurobiology, epidemiology, prevention, and/or treatment of alcohol use disorders (AUD, specific to NIAAA) or substance use disorders (SUD, including AUD – specific to NIDA) and related health conditions.

Eligible Participants: For the purpose of this NOFO, “health care professional” is broadly defined to include a variety of licensed/credentialed health care providers, therapists, and allied professionals who provide direct patient care in general or specialty practice settings. Examples include but are not limited to physicians and nurses in primary care, general medical settings, emergency departments and trauma centers; medical staff in hepatology practices; nurses, social workers, and therapists in public health clinics, schools, child welfare, and criminal justice settings; pharmacists; medical staff in infectious disease clinics; and health professionals in other settings in which patients with alcohol or other substance use issues are likely to seek and receive services (including services unrelated to substance use).

Additional Feature of the Re-issue: In this initiative, participating NIH Institutes and Centers will require the inclusion of the Plan for enhancing Diverse Perspective (PEDP) to foster diversity, inclusivity, and accessibility in the research community. The plan will be evaluated  during the peer review as part of the scorable criteria and during programmatic reviews. The plan will be used to inform funding decisions.

Outcome/Justification: There is a need to continue this program, considering the intractable public health impact of alcohol, opioids, and other substances, their associated consequences, and the persistent stigma associated with them. It is imperative that health professionals possess the latest knowledge about addiction and strategies for addressing it during interactions with a patient, including the neurobiological basis of addiction; evidence-based screening and assessment tools; preventive interventions; how and when to effectively deliver brief motivational interventions; behavioral therapies; available medications for the treatment of alcohol use disorder, opioid dependence, and opioid withdrawal; the role of prescription drug monitoring programs; regulations governing the use and sharing of medical records and patient information (Common Rule, HIPAA, 42 CFR Part 2); service needs of subgroups and special populations; addressing common co-occurring disorders; and strategies for referring patients to specialty treatment services.

NIDA-Specific Language:

NIDA will support applications to the re-issue of  PAR 19 207 for projects designed to engage practicing health care professionals in education and research on substance use disorders. This can be accomplished using a variety of approaches, models, and activities. Competitive programs should provide high impact research experiences to health care providers, those training to be health care providers, or those training health care providers. Activities should go beyond the development of brochures or toolkits, unless there is substantial clear evidence for the impact of such materials, and they are measurably different from what already exists. Applications that address health disparities, underrepresented populations, or underserved and disadvantaged populations are encouraged. Furthermore, NIDA is looking for creative and novel approaches to training health care providers in substance use disorders. Each program should address the following components within the application:

• A comprehensive dissemination plan describing how the materials developed can be shared with other potential programs and partners.
• An evaluation plan that canvasses participants and mentors. The evaluation plan should include detail how feedback will be gathered, interpreted, and implemented throughout the life of the program.
• Evidence that the program can continue beyond the life of the grant is essential.