National Registry Highlights Comparative Effectiveness Research
Looking for evidence-based practices to use in your own program? SAMHSA has made the process easier by adding a new search feature to its National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP) Web site.
The feature allows people to identify NREPP interventions that have been evaluated in comparative effectiveness research studies.
Both the Obama Administration and the U.S. Congress have championed additional investments in comparative effectiveness research to enhance public understanding about which health care interventions are most effective in different circumstances and with different patients.
"The new NREPP feature can provide added information for states and communities seeking to determine which mental health and substance abuse prevention and treatment interventions may best address their needs," said Kevin D. Hennessy, SAMHSA’s Science to Service Coordinator.
To use this new search feature, go to http://www.nrepp.samhsa.gov, click "Find Interventions," and click the checkbox labeled "Evaluated in comparative effectiveness research studies" under "Implementation History." Then, search for an intervention that fits your organization’s needs.
For example, a search for "substance abuse" retrieves 64 options that have been evaluated in comparative effectiveness research studies, ranging in focus from behavioral couples therapy for alcoholism and drug abuse to a school-based anti-steroid program.
In fact, several highlighted interventions—including Adolescent Community Reinforcement Approach, Family Support Network, and Multidimensional Family Therapy—were included in a SAMHSA-funded comparison of different approaches to treating adolescent cannabis use.
A search for "trauma" yields eight interventions, focusing on trauma-informed substance abuse treatment for women, and for people with co-occurring disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder, for instance.
The NREPP database currently includes 151 interventions. For more information about how to use NREPP to identify specific interventions or how to submit an intervention for NREPP review, visit the NREPP Web site. call 1-866-43-NREPP (1-866-436-7377), or email NREPP@samhsa.hhs.gov.
SAMHSA’s National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP) is a searchable online registry of mental health and substance abuse interventions that have been reviewed and rated by independent reviewers.
The purpose of this registry is to assist the public in identifying approaches to preventing and treating mental and/or substance use disorders that have been scientifically tested and that can be readily disseminated to the field.
NREPP is a voluntary, self-nominating system. There will always be some interventions that are not submitted to NREPP, and not all submitted interventions are reviewed.
NREPP publishes a summary for every intervention it reviews. A summary includes:
- Descriptive information about the intervention and its targeted outcomes
- Ratings for research quality and dissemination readiness
- List of studies and materials submitted for review
- Contact information for the intervention developer.
For more information, visit the NREPP Web site.