Grant: Knowledge Synthesis Grant: Prevention and Treatment of Illicit Substance Use

Illicit drug use is prevalent in Canada and is associated with a significant public health burden. The early detection and treatment of drug use have the potential to dramatically improve outcomes for those who use and abuse illicit drugs, particularly adolescents whose brains are still undergoing development. Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) is a public health approach to the delivery of early intervention and treatment services for individuals with substance use disorders and those at risk of developing them. Brief interventions are time limited efforts (e.g., 1 or 2 conversations or meetings) to provide information or advice, increase motivation to avoid substance use and to teach behaviour change skills that will reduce substance use and related harms. The accumulating research on SBIRT for illicit drugs underscores the need for a systematic review in order to assist health care practitioners and patients in making evidence based decisions. Systematic reviews are an ideal choice for making sense of a large body of information, and can help to map out areas of uncertainty and identify gaps in research. A systematic review will yield a better understanding of the SBIRT approach aimed at illicit drug use, which will be helpful in establishing guidelines for implementation in general practice and other relevant settings. Finally, it will provide decision makers with the best evidence as to where future research might be most beneficial.