Kaiser Permanente Washington researchers are exploring how to improve prevention and treatment of health issues due to alcohol and other drug use. The addictions research group conducts innovative research to help patients and their providers prevent and treat problems caused by alcohol, cannabis, opioids, and other drugs in health settings.
A major focus of the addictions research group is how to integrate patient-centered care for alcohol and other drug use into medical settings. For more than 3 decades, their work has focused on the need for health systems to routinely measure and address alcohol and other drug use as part of whole-person health, in nonjudgmental, patient-centered ways.
"Our alcohol-related research has built tools — such as a brief video, handout, and a patient decision aid — that help overcome stigma so that patients and families can find the help they want and need," said Katharine A. Bradley, MD, MPH, a senior investigator at Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute (KPWHRI) and internal medicine physician with Washington Permanente Medical Group.
The addictions research group is conducting a variety of studies to improve measures and documentation of substance use in the medical record. "We are working to find ways to easily document the extent of cannabis exposure for both medical and nonmedical use in electronic health records," said Gwen Lapham, PhD, MSW, a KPWHRI assistant investigator. Finding innovative ways to provide treatment is also a focus. "We are testing how to get proven online treatments for addiction into the hands of patients who could benefit," said Joseph E. Glass, PhD, MSW, a KPWHRI associate investigator whose research at the institute is funded in part by an early-career award to study the effectiveness of treatments for alcohol use disorders in primary care.
These are among the group’s current studies:
These are among the studies that the addictions research group has completed:
Shoemaker-Hunt SJ, Evans L, Swan H, Bacon O, Ike B, Baldwin LM, Parchman M. Study protocol for evaluating Six Building Blocks for Opioid Management implementation in primary care practices. Implement Sci Commun. 2020 Feb 26;1:16. doi: 10.1186/s43058-020-00008-6. eCollection 2020. PubMed
Williams EC, Matson TE, Harris AHS. Strategies to increase implementation of pharmacotherapy for alcohol use disorders: a structured review of care delivery and implementation interventions. Addict Sci Clin Pract. 2019 Feb 12;14(1):6. doi: 10.1186/s13722-019-0134-8. PubMed
Lapham G, Boudreau DM, Johnson EA, Bobb JF, Matthews AG, McCormack J, Liu D, Samet JH, Saxon AJ, Campbell CI, Glass JE, Rossom RC, Murphy MT, Binswanger IA, Yarborough BJH, Bradley KA. Prevalence and treatment of opioid use disorders among primary care patients in six health systems. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2020;207:107732. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2019.107732. Epub 2019 Nov 15. PubMed
Sayre M, Lapham GT, Lee AK, Oliver M, Bobb JF, Caldeiro RM, Bradley KA. Routine Assessment of Symptoms of Substance Use Disorders in Primary Care: Prevalence and Severity of Reported Symptoms. LID - 10.1007/s11606-020-05650-3 [doi] J Gen Intern Med. 2020 Jan 23. pii: 10.1007/s11606-020-05650-3. doi: 10.1007/s11606-020-05650-3 [Epub ahead of print] PubMed
D Sullivan M, Boudreau D, Ichikawa L, Cronkite D, Albertson-Junkans L, Salgado G, VonKorff M, Carrell DS. Primary care opioid taper plans are associated with sustained opioid dose reduction. J Gen Intern Med. 2020 Mar;35(3):687-695. doi: 10.1007/s11606-019-05445-1. Epub 2020 Jan 6. PubMed
![]() Jennifer F. Bobb, PhDAssociate Biostatistics Investigator |
![]() Katharine A. Bradley, MD, MPHSenior Investigator |
![]() David S. Carrell, PhDAssociate Investigator |
![]() Joseph E. Glass, PhD, MSWAssociate Investigator |
![]() Clarissa Hsu, PhDAssociate Investigator |
![]() Gwen Lapham, PhD, MPH, MSWAssistant Investigator |
![]() Jennifer B. McClure, PhDDirector, Investigative Science |
![]() Julie E. Richards, PhD, MPHSenior Collaborative Scientist |
![]() Paige D. Wartko, PhD, MPHCollaborative Scientist |
![]() Yu-Ru Su, PhDAssistant Biostatistics Investigator |
![]() Leah K. Hamilton, PhDSenior Collaborative Scientist |
![]() Noorie Hyun, PhDAssistant Biostatistics Investigator |
![]() Jess Mogk, MPHCollaborative Scientist |
![]() Morgan Justice, MACollaborative Scientist |
![]() Theresa E. Matson, PhD, MPHCollaborative Scientist |
Kevin Hallgren, PhD
Associate Professor
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
University of Washington
Emily Williams, PhD, MPH
Investigator
Health Services Research & Development
VA Puget Sound Health Care System
Edwin Wong, PhD
Associate Professor
Department of Health Services and Population Health
University of Washington