FY 2013 Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) Medical Professional Training Program

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) is accepting applications for fiscal year (FY) 2013 Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) Medical Professional Training Program grants (short title: SBIRT Training). The purpose of this program is to develop and implement training programs to teach health professionals (medical residents and students of nursing, social work and counseling) the skills necessary to provide evidence-based screening, brief intervention and brief treatment and to refer patients who are at risk for a substance use disorder (SUD) to appropriate treatment. As shown by data collected from SBIRT cross-site evaluations (SBIRT Cohort I Cross-Site Evaluation Final Report, 2010), the vast majority of SBIRT service providers are nurses, social workers and counselors with the role of the physician as leading the effort through clinical work, advocacy and supervising SBIRT in medical settings. Therefore, these grants will be initiated in programs that teach these health professionals in both didactic and practice settings to promote SBIRT as a strategy for reaching persons at risk for SUD. Grantees will be required to use training curricula developed by the initial cohort of SAMHSA SBIRT Medical Residency grantees. The intended outcomes of this program are to increase the adoption and practice of SBIRT throughout the health care delivery system. SAMHSA expects that SBIRT will be a component of the education curriculum for the identified programs in each academic year for the duration of the grant. The specialty substance use treatment system is often not appropriate, or is unavailable, to those who are at risk for SUD. A key aspect of SBIRT is the integration and coordination of screening and treatment components into a system of services. This system links a community's specialized treatment programs with a network of early intervention and referral activities that are conducted in health care delivery settings. This program will address workforce development by increasing the number of health care professionals who can address the needs of persons at risk for SUD. The training also promotes the emphasis of the Affordable Care Act on a team approach to the integration of behavioral health into medical health. The SBIRT Training program will support the SAMHSA Health Reform Strategic Initiative and expand access to individuals vulnerable to health disparities. The SBIRT Training grants are authorized under Section 509 of the Public Health Service Act, as amended. This announcement addresses Healthy People 2020, Substance Abuse Topic Area HP 2020-SA.