SMART Recovery Facilitators: Attitudes and use of SMART Recovery

tools

Peter J. Kelly, Amanda L. Baker, Frank P. Deane, Anthony Shakeshaft, David Hunt, & Dayle Raftery

Funding

Partnership

Introduction

Alternate treatment optionCBT Focus & Trained facilitators

Lack of researchNo Australian studies & few international studies

Aims

1. Examine SMART Recovery facilitators’ attitudes towards groups

2. Identify common therapeutic practices used within SMART Recovery groups

Method

Procedure

National survey of SMART Recovery facilitators conducted in 2013 & 2014

Registered facilitators emailed a link to online survey

Who facilitatesSMART

Recovery?

Facilitators (n = 91)

Average Age = 46.33 (SD = 11.83)

46.2% have a history of addiction

Years facilitating = 2.47 (SD = 2.43)

52% 47%

Facilitators (cont.)

Highest Education 34.1% Undergraduate degree

30.8% TAFE Certificate/Diploma

Profession17.6% Drug and Alcohol Workers

14.3% Counsellor

SMART Groups58.2% run only one groupAvg 6.5 people per group

Views on SMART Tools

Helpfulness of SMART Tools

Very Unhelpful + Unhelpful (%)

Somewhat Helpful (%)

Helpful +Very Helpful (%)

Cost-Benefit Analysis - 13.6 86.4

Goal Setting 3.0 16.4 80.6

ABCs 1.5 24.2 74.3

Problem Solving 1.5 26.2 72.3

Urge Log 10.5 29.9 59.7

Change Plan 9.3 50.8 40.0

Role Play 31.3 51.6 17.2

Confidence in Using SMART Tools

Not Confident + Slightly

Unconfident(%)Somewhat

Confident (%)Confident + Very

Confident (%)

Cost-Benefit Analysis - 2.7 97.3

Goal Setting - 8.1 91.9

ABCs 2.7 - 97.3

Problem Solving 2.7 5.4 91.9

Urge Log 5.4 2.7 91.9

Change Plan 5.4 10.8 83.8

Role Play 18.9 21.6 59.4

Results: Role-Play

Role-play received the lowest helpfulness and confidence rating

Facilitators reported using role-play in only 6.65% of their groups

41.2% of facilitators never use role-play

Results: Weekly Plan

Facilitators in 59.5% of groups described participants leaving with a weekly plan.

Facilitators review participants’ weekly plans ‘often’.

Participants reported that they left group with a weekly plan ‘quite a bit’ to ‘quite a lot’.

Results: Weekly Plan

Participants complete ‘a little’ to ‘some’ of their plans for the week.

Generally, the weekly plans completed are completed ‘somewhat’ to ‘moderately’ well

Discussion

SMART Recovery is widely used across Australia

Use of between session activities and role plays are recommended however are not fully utilized

Increasing training time for role play and between session activities as part of facilitator training may

increase its use in groups

Future DirectionsConsider ways to improve response rates

There is a need to consider different research designs

Qualitative interviewsLongitudinal research

Controlled trials

Potential training implications

Questions?

Amanda BakerAmanda.Baker@newcastle.edu.au