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 tobacco, 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. Over the past three 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," says 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. "We are working to find ways to easily document the extent of cannabis exposure for both medical and nonmedical use in electronic health records," says Gwen Lapham, PhD, MSW, a KPWHRI assistant investigator. "We are also testing how to get proven online treatments for addiction into the hands of patients who could benefit," says Joseph E. Glass, PhD, MSW, a KPWHRI associate investigator. These are among the group’s current studies:
"We partnered with mental health and primary care leaders at Kaiser Permanente Washington to implement a program that addresses addictions and other common mental health concerns as part of routine primary care," says Amy K. Lee, MPH, a KPWHRI research associate. These are among the studies that the addictions research group has completed:
Steel TL, Malte CA, Bradley KA, Hawkins EJ. Use of electronic health record data to estimate the probability of alcohol withdrawal syndrome in a national cohort of hospitalized veterans. J Addict Med. 2020 Dec 14. doi: 10.1097/ADM.0000000000000782. [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed
McClure JB, Lapham G. Tobacco quitline engagement and outcomes among primary care patients reporting use of tobacco or dual tobacco and cannabis: an observational study. Subst Abus. 2020 Dec 3:1-6. doi: 10.1080/08897077.2020.1846665. [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed
Frost MC, Blosnich JR, Lehavot K, Chen JA, Rubinsky AD, Glass JE, Williams EC. Disparities in documented drug use disorders between transgender and cisgender U.S. Veterans Health Administration patients. J Addict Med. 2020 Nov 25. doi: 10.1097/ADM.0000000000000769. [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed
Heffner JL, Catz SL, Klasnja P, Tiffany B, McClure JB. Development of a mobile health intervention with personal experiments for smokers who are ambivalent about quitting: formative design and testing. JMIR Form Res. 2020;4(8):e21784. doi: 10.2196/21784. PubMed
Glass JE, Williams EC, Oh H. Racial/ethnic discrimination and alcohol use disorder severity among United States adults. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2020 Aug 10;216:108203. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2020.108203. PubMed
![]() Jennifer F. Bobb, PhDAssociate Investigator |
![]() Denise M. Boudreau, PhDSenior Investigator |
![]() Katharine A. Bradley, MD, MPHSenior Investigator |
![]() David S. Carrell, PhDAssociate Investigator |
![]() Lynn DeBar, PhDSenior Investigator |
![]() Joseph E. Glass, PhD, MSWAssociate Investigator |
![]() Clarissa Hsu, PhDAssistant Investigator |
![]() Gwen Lapham, PhD, MPH, MSWAssistant Investigator |
![]() Amy K. Lee, MPHResearch Associate |
![]() Jennifer B. McClure, PhDDirector of Research, Faculty, & Development; Senior Investigator |
![]() Julie E. Richards, PhD, MPHResearch Associate II |
![]() Paige D. Wartko, PhD, MPHResearch Associate |
![]() Kai Yeung, PharmD, PhDAssistant Investigator |
![]() Yu-Ru Su, PhDAssistant Investigator |
Emily Williams, PhD, MPH
Investigator
Health Services Research & Development
VA Puget Sound Health Care System