Connecting patients to services: Screening, brief intervention and referral to treatment in primary health care

Screening, brief intervention and referral to treatment (SBIRT) in primary care is a burgeoning environmental treatment strategy for illicit and prescription drug abuse and a variety of other health behaviors. While clinical research on SBIRT's efficacy continues to produce positive results, translational research focusing on the integration of the evidence-based processes into primary care settings has been less prevalent. This paper describes the decisions made in the design of the Indiana SBIRT project and describes several barriers that prevented eligible patients from receiving services provided through SBIRT. It then elaborates on the qualitative mechanisms used to identify solutions to those barriers and provides preliminary quantitative evidence for the effectiveness of the solutions that were implemented. The intention of this translational research is to provide a broad perspective on program improvement so that other SBIRT projects in the United States and internationally might benefit from the lessons learned by Indiana SBIRT.