Equipping mental health professionals to meet the needs of substance-using clients: Evaluation of an SBIRT training program.

Evidence-based methods of screening for and intervening with substance use are necessary to improve mental health treatment for the millions of individuals who use substances, yet practitioners rarely received training in these methods. Screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) is an evidence-based practice that provides practitioners with a set of skills and standard method for screening and providing early intervention for risky substance use. The present study implemented and evaluated a 2-part SBIRT training program for 87 students in mental health counseling, clinical, counseling, and school psychology graduate programs at 1 institution. We evaluated students’ satisfaction with the training as well as the impact of the training on students’ knowledge of motivational interviewing (MI) and SBIRT and self-efficacy to implement SBIRT. We also evaluated whether completion of a booster training would increase knowledge, self-efficacy, and clinical practices beyond gains observed from the initial training. A pre-, post-, and 30-day follow-up repeated-measures design was used to assess changes in MI and SBIRT knowledge, SBIRT self-efficacy, and use of SBIRT skills. Results suggest that a 2-part SBIRT training program delivered to counselors in training can increase their knowledge of MI and SBIRT as well as their self-efficacy to deliver SBIRT. The overwhelming majority of students were satisfied with the training and found it to be relevant and useful. In response to calls for training mental health professionals to work with substance-using clients, results indicate the SBIRT training model can advance this effort.