The Technological Architecture Supporting Online Addiction Treatment Resources for Consumers

Dec. 9, 2020
Healthcare consumers searching for addiction treatment resources online face major challenges, but a new resource posted to Google’s Recover Together website, is connecting them with nationwide capabilities

Earlier this fall, the Mountain View, California-based Google announced that it was featuring the Addiction Treatment Needs Assessment, a new online resource created by the Norwalk, Conn.-based Shatterproof (“a national nonprofit organization dedicated to reversing the addiction crisis”), the Chevy Chase, Md.-based American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM), and OpenBeds, an Appriss Health company, on Google’s Recover Together website.

As a press release posted to the Apriss Health website noted, “The online resource features a set of consumer-friendly, clinically validated questions to assess the needs of a person with addiction and produce guidance on the type of treatment that is most appropriate for them. The free resource is available nationwide at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the addiction crisis, with drug overdose rates surging across the country. Google is helping to meet individuals and families where they are already searching for addiction treatment, online.”

Further, the press release noted, “The thirteen-question assessment was added as a new resource for Recovery Month to the Recover Together website, launched in 2019. Data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health show that only 1 in 10 people who need treatment for addiction, receive it. Far fewer individuals receive quality, evidence-based care. Google is helping to bridge the treatment gap by adding the assessment to their website and assisting those seeking treatment to obtain the appropriate level of care. In addition, Google is creating videos featuring individuals with lived experience to help families navigate the daunting process of finding care for loved ones.”

And, the press release noted, “Currently, many people searching for addiction treatment don’t know where to start. Instead of selecting a treatment setting based on clinical guidance, they are swayed by high-priced internet advertisements or misconceptions about what addiction treatment “should” be. The new Addiction Treatment Needs Assessment will describe to users the type of treatment setting, for example outpatient treatment or residential, and other features to search for based on their needs. By increasing the consumer’s knowledge on where to start, the resource not only empowers patients and families but puts them on the right path for improved outcomes.”

According to a description on its website, “Appriss Health provides trusted technology solutions to federal and state governments, payers, health systems, clinicians, pharmacies, and health information exchanges working to improve public health. In collaboration with state governments, we built the nation’s most comprehensive, standards-driven data integration platform to combat the nation’s opioid epidemic. Our platform connects 52 of the 54 U.S. PDMPs, close to 1 million prescribers and half a million care team members, more than 30,000 pharmacies, and thousands of hospitals, managing more than 400 million monthly transactions. It enables seamless in-workflow visibility to patients’ prescription drug history and a comprehensive solution that improves access to needed care for people with behavioral health conditions and social determinants of health challenges,” the description adds.

“We applaud Google for adding a link to the Addiction Treatment Needs Assessment to their Recover Together website, making this trusted resource available to so many,” Shatterproof executive vice president Steve D’Antonio said, in a statement. “Treatment of a substance use disorder is not ‘one size fits all’ and by helping to identify the appropriate type of care we can greatly increase the chances of success.”

The anonymous ATNA assessment asks a variety of questions related to substance use, health, and environment. The output of the assessment offers guidance on the treatment type an individual should start with as they seek treatment. “It is incredibly challenging to navigate the intricacies of the behavioral health system in the US, especially at a time of crisis,” shared Nishi Rawat, M.D., senior vice president at Appriss Health and co-founder of OpenBeds. “We hope that this tool will help people take the important first step toward making an informed decision about the right type of treatment for themselves or their loved one.”

“Addiction is a treatable, chronic medical disease involving complex interactions among brain circuits, genetics, the environment, and an individual’s life experiences. The severity of this illness can vary significantly from person to person and therefore the type and intensity of treatment should be matched to each patient’s needs,” said Paul H. Earley, M.D., DFASAM, president of ASAM.  “The ASAM Criteria® provides an evidence-based framework for determining the right level of care and tailoring that care to the individual patient. The Addiction Treatment Needs Assessment, which is based on The ASAM Criteria, is an important tool for helping patients understand where to begin their search for care.”

Shortly after the publication of the press release, Nishi Rawat, M.D., vice president of Apriss Health, who also continues to practice as a critical care physician, spoke with Healthcare Innovation Editor-in-Chief Mark Hagland regarding the issues surrounding addiction treatment. Below are excerpts from that interview.

Tell me about the background to this announcement?

Appriss Health provides tools to the federal government and state governments and to payers and providers. This is the nation’s most comprehensive platform to address the nation’s opioid epidemic. OpenBeds is a subsidiary of Appriss; we were acquired about two years ago. We offer a cloud-based platform that provides real-time availability of substance abuse disorder treatment capacities; we manage referrals, analytics. We have both a clinician-facing system and a public-facing system, and are deployed across eight states. We work with a state government to set up a two-sided network. Providers—inpatient, outpatient, substance abuse, mental health; on the other side, referrers—hospitals, health systems, EDs, criminal justice system, crisis lines, crisis teams—all use our system to refer into treatment. In addition, we offer a public view or portal into our state-based systems, so that members of the public and peruse those systems. They can use our educational systems, can use our decision support tool; and can reach out to providers. It’s so much more than a treatment locator.

How were the connections made to Shatterproof and the ASAM?

We developed this public-facing portal into our system called Treatment Connection. People wanted us to open up our network to the public. We wanted to do this the right way, and wanted to make sure we had the right tools to help people make more informed, educated decisions around treatment for their loved ones. That didn’t exist. It doesn’t recommend that they pursue any specific type of treatment or recommend any specific provider. We met with ASAM, and they thought it was great, and Shatterproof was looking to partner, too. So the three organizations partnered to launch this Addition Treatment Needs Assessment. So we took about a year to build it, test it, validate it, do usability testing. And then we launched it a few months ago. And then Google took an interest in it, and put it into their recovery site, the Recover Together site.

[As Google explains it on its Recover Together website, “Whether you are in recovery, know someone in recovery, or are an ally to the movement-you can show your support here. Enter your 5-digit zip code to be included in one of the biggest, most vital movements in our nation’s history. We will add a marker to your area that allows others to see how broad, influential, and powerful recovery is, from coast to coast: a vision of recovery across America. You can click into the map to see the number of supporters near you or in any given location.”]

Can you speak to the issues involved, as a physician?

People out there are lost, right? And it’s so hard, even as a medical professional, for me to figure out what the right type of treatment is for someone’s needs. There’s a labyrinth of information out there. So we felt that it was really important to build this tool, to guide people towards the most appropriate treatment.

How does this speak to the potential paths available to people seeking treatment for addiction?

Clinicians—ED, ICU physicians, hospitalists—we often see patients suffering from substance abuse, mental health conditions, and these play a role in exacerbating primary medical conditions. When you see someone in the hospital, and for example, they have an abscess due to heroin or injected drug use, typically, physicians see their role as just addressing the medical condition, but not the underlying substance abuse issues. It’s challenging to navigate the system even as physicians. And as physicians, we receive very little training on mental health. That’s started to change in the last two or so years. But many of us don’t have that background, and it’s really difficult to pick it up on the fly. And as a result, people have their medical condition addressed, but not their underlying substance abuse condition.

And unfortunately, some physicians feel it’s not their problem. But it’s also very hard to assess and refer, given that most physicians don’t have the background. And as a result, people are not accessing or being referred to appropriate treatment coming out of inpatient care. A study came out maybe about 18 months ago from Hopkins, looking at appropriateness of referrals for people who have overdosed from opioids. They were alive in the ED—and the Johns Hopkins researcher involved looked at whether they were referred to appropriate treatment—medicine-assisted and/or counseling. And only 11 percent were referred appropriately. And that was West Virginia.

What is your hope for the expansion of the use of this tool?

I hope that this helps people find what they need. I want to make sure that it’s having an impact in getting people to the right type of treatment. I’m certain this will help many.

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

I would say that the pandemic has profoundly affected the ability of people to access and receive substance abuse and mental health treatment. We certainly believe that TreatmentConnection, our public safety portal, along with this tool, will be helpful across the industry. In fact, we’re operating the PDMP—the prescription drug monitoring program—in more than 40 states. And we’re also the connection mechanism for interstate tracking of PDMP resources.

Sponsored Recommendations

2024's Healthcare Buyer Journey: New Research and Insights

Join us on April 30th for a webinar unveiling insights from the latest study on the Healthcare IT Buying Journey! Discover evolving challenges, effective health data management...

Improving care with AI-powered solutions

Don't miss our April 23rd webinar delving into the transformative impact of AI-powered solutions on healthcare. Join industry leaders Reid Conant and Dr. Patrick McGill as they...

Shield your health system against cyber threats

You won't want to miss out on this imperative April 4th webinar about how you can protect your healthcare organization. Join us to learn how to fortify your health system against...

Healthcare Trends 2024: Trends & Strategies for Future Success

Explore the future of healthcare in 2024 with insights from the Healthcare Industry Trends Report. Stay ahead of the curve as we delve into the latest industry developments and...