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This study aims to describe and to compare the reliability and accuracy of different methods of measuring psychiatric symptom changes in the context of substance use.

A group of 60 patients in routine methadone treatment were followed‐up during a “watchful wait” period of four to six weeks. Diagnoses of common mental disorders meeting International Classification of Diseases (ICD‐10) criteria were established using the CIS‐R structured diagnostic interview. Brief questionnaires for depression (PHQ‐9) and anxiety (GAD‐7) were used to measure symptom changes between test and retest. It was hypothesised that the accuracy of symptom changes measured using brief questionnaires may be compromised by methodological artefacts such as poor specificity, regression to the mean and measurement error. These assumptions were tested empirically.

It was demonstrated that measuring change using conventional cut‐offs in brief symptom questionnaires tends to overestimate the prevalence of common mental disorders and the rates of improvement. Using higher cut‐off scores calibrated in samples of alcohol and drug users, in combination with a reliable change index results in more conservative and reliable estimates of symptom change.

This paper presents a considered discussion on the relative merits and limitations of alternative psychiatric symptom measurement methods. These methodological recommendations may be of interest to research and clinical practice concerned with evaluating changes in comorbid depression and anxiety. Important questions are also raised about the modest degree of symptom changes typically observed during a watchful wait period.

The purpose of this paper is to explore addiction service users’ experiences of psychological interventions for depression symptoms, with an emphasis on understanding obstacles to engage with treatment.

This was a thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with ten people who took part in a randomised controlled trial of cognitive and behavioural interventions; four of whom never engaged with treatment.

Five prominent obstacles to access therapy were: memory deficits, becoming overwhelmed by multiple demands and appointments, being housebound due to fluctuations in mental health problems, tendency to avoid the unfamiliar, and contextual life problems related to deprivation and social conflict.

The authors note some possible limitations related to overreliance on telephone interviews and interviewers’ field notes. The authors discuss the findings in light of epidemiological research, cognitive, behavioural and motivational enhancement theories.

The authors propose it is important to recognise and address multiple obstacles to therapy. Offering therapy appointments that are co-located within addiction services and time-contingent to other social/medical interventions may help to address some of these obstacles.

The present qualitative results complement the prior experimental research and enrich the understanding of how to maximise engagement with psychological interventions.

Cigarette smoking remains the primary preventable cause of mortality and morbidity globally. The overarching goal of the paper is to disseminate the Behavioral Activation Treatment for Smoking (BATS), which integrates behavioral activation principles with standard treatment guidelines to assist individuals in achieving short- and long-term smoking cessation. Through a series of sequential steps, BATS guides individuals who wish to quit smoking to increase their engagement in healthy, pleasurable, and value-consistent activities.

The document provides the BATS rationale and contains an abridged manual for use by clinicians and/or researchers in the context of clinical trials. Findings: BATS is accruing empirical evidence that suggests its ability to promote successful smoking cessation outcomes while decreasing any associated depressive symptoms.

BATS is accruing empirical evidence that suggests its ability to promote successful smoking cessation outcomes while decreasing any associated depressive symptoms.

A description of key components, forms, and strategies to address common treatment barriers are included.

BATS’s strong roots in learning theories and its idiographic nature allow for the intervention to be implemented flexibly across a wide range of settings and smoking populations. The treatment may also be combined seamlessly with pharmacotherapies. BATS targets both cigarette smoking and depressive symptoms, which constitute a significant barrier to cessation, through a common pathway: increasing rewarding activities. The treatment offers a parsimonious complement to standard smoking cessation treatments.

This paper explores the background principles, theories, and components of the QuikFix intervention for primary and comorbid substance use in young people.

QuikFix is a brief Motivational Interviewing (MI) intervention utilising cognitive-behavioural coping skills training to reduce vulnerability to substance use and comorbid mental health problems in young people. It is delivered in two to three brief sessions including an assessment. A new version, QuikFix PI (Personality Intervention) which incorporates coping skills training targeting, sensation seeking, impulsive, depressive and anxiety personality styles that may underlie primary and comorbid substance use problems is presented.

The original QuikFix intervention has demonstrated efficacy in young alcohol and cannabis users with comorbid depression and anxiety symptoms. The efficacy of the new personality targeted version of QuikFix is currently being tested in a large randomized controlled trial among young people with alcohol related injuries/illnesses. Future research is required to determine the efficacy of QuikFix PI in comorbid populations including those with behavioural disorders.

QuikFix interventions can be delivered via telephone or face-to-face in clinical settings for clients with primary substance use and comorbid depression and anxiety symptoms.

This paper describes a novel two to three session manualised personality targeted substance use intervention. The full original QuikFix treatment manual is available online (Hides and Carroll 2010).

This paper aims to describe: the need for substance misuse treatment with high risk, personality disordered prisoners, and the implementation of two evidence-based psychological interventions aimed at addressing substance misuse within a high secure, personality disorder treatment unit and potential future evaluation options.

In addition to the literature base evidencing the need for substance misuse treatment with this population, the Iceberg and ‘InsideOut’ interventions are presented. These interventions adopt a risk reduction and health intervention approach respectively. This includes explanations of how they came to be implemented within a prison based personality disorder treatment service and potential ways to evaluate these services.

Evidence-based psychological interventions can be implemented for this population whilst being responsive to changing government priorities for substance misuse treatment. The organisation’s research strategy includes an intention to evaluate these interventions in order to inform future delivery.

The high levels of co-morbidity between personality disorder and substance misuse disorders in the high security prison estate highlights the need for substance related treatment for this population. Given the responsivity issues relevant to personality disordered offenders, the format of delivery of evidence-based psychological interventions has to be considered.

This paper discusses the application of evidence-based psychological interventions for substance use within a high secure, personality disordered population which has developed as a result of ministerial changes within the treatment of both substance misuse and personality disorder.

This article presents the Impulsive Lifestyle Counselling program, a time-limited psychoeducational approach to increasing patient awareness of antisocial personality disorder and its consequences.

This article describes the ILC program, a program developed as an add-on to treatment for substance use disorders, gives examples of issues and patient-counsellor interactions in the ILC sessions.

During the ILC sessions the patients engaged with the counsellors in diverse ways, reflecting the varying levels of psychopathology and overall functioning and barriers and incentive for lifestyle changes.

Patients with substance use disorder and comorbid antisocial personality disorder can receive better care with brief counselling that focuses on antisocial behavior and thinking. More diverse evidence-based treatments are needed for this disorder.

Substance use disorders (SUDs) often co-occur with major depressive disorder (MDD), yet treatments targeting this comorbidity are limited, especially in resource limited settings where individuals with SUDs often receive treatment.

Based upon principles of reinforcement and behavioral economic models of substance use, as well as the Brief Behavioral Activation Treatment for Depression (BATD; Lejuez et al., 2011), the Life Enhancement Treatment for Substance Use (LETS ACT; Daughters et al., 2008) was developed to meet the unique needs of patients with MDD-SUD comorbidity.

The current manuscript presents a summary of the theoretical foundations and key components of LETS ACT.

A specific focus on increasing dissemination via the flexible delivery dependent on patient and treatment setting characteristics is provided throughout.

To provide a summary of the principles, theories and basic components of a recently developed brief integrated motivational intervention (BIMI) for working with individuals experience co-ccurring severe mental health and substance use problems in inpatient settings, including the outcomes of a feasiblity randomised controlled trial (RCT). There are greater financial costs and a negative impact on functioning associated with psychiatric admissions for people who experience co-occurring severe mental heath and substance misuse problems. In addition, their engagement in treatment is often problematic.

The BIMI described was evaluated via a feasibility RCT that assessed whether the opportunity to discuss use of substances whilst on an inpatient ward represented an opportunity to engage inpatients in thinking about their use and the impact it has on their mental health.

The BIMI is delivered in short burst sessions of 15-30 minutes over a two-week period adopting a simple 3-step approach that can be delivered by routine ward staff. It incorporates an assessment of substance use, mental health and motivation followed by personalised feedback, a focus on increasing awareness of the impact on mental health and development of goals and a change plan. The intervention has been shown to lead to higher levels of engagement in clients exploration of substance use and the impact on mental health. Findings suggest both staff and inpatients found the intervention feasible and acceptable.

Routine ward staff were trained to deliver a brief intervention to inpatients during an acute hospital admission.