ASSIST in Pitjantjatjara: Protocol for a randomised crossover validation study among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians

IF 1.4 Q4 MEDICINE, RESEARCH & EXPERIMENTAL

Contemporary Clinical Trials Communications Pub Date : 2025-08-07 DOI:10.1016/j.conctc.2025.101532

Matthew W.R. Stevens , Sue Bertossa , Dominic Barry , Chris Holmwood , KS Kylie Lee , John Marsden , Matt Pedler , Mark Thompson , Scott Wilson , Robert L. Ali

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background

Substance use significantly contributes to disease burden among Australians, with harms exacerbated among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples by colonisation-related factors like stigma and trauma. Addressing this gap requires culturally acceptable, valid and reliable screening tools, available in a familiar language to the participant, to identify and provide support for those at-risk. This protocol describes a study aimed at validating a culturally-adapted screening tool — the Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST) — into Pitjantjatjara, to detect risk of substance-related harm.

Methods

Recruitment will occur at a variety of Aboriginal health and welfare settings across remote, rural and urban South Australia. Eligible participants (aged 18–65) will be briefed and, upon consent, randomly complete the ASSIST app on an iPad and a semi-structured, yarning-style diagnostic interview (see endnote 1) with a health professional and Pitjantjatjara interpreter. The interview will assess for a range of clinically-defined substance use disorders (based on DSM-5-TR and ICD-11 criteria). All participants will be asked to complete the app a second time (between 7 and 28 days) to assess reliability, while a subset of participants at highest-risk will also undergo specialist evaluation from an independent clinician, as a second check for validity.

Discussion

Valid and reliable assessment tools are essential for detecting risky and harmful substance use. If valid, this app has the potential to contribute to community-led efforts to bridge the health gap by addressing modifiable health risk factors.

Trial registration

ANZCTR: ACTRN12625000413426. Open Science Framework pre-registration: https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/GNZAY.

Version control number

Protocol version 1.1, June 23, 2025.

查看原文本刊更多论文

Pitjantjatjara的ASSIST：澳大利亚土著和托雷斯海峡岛民的随机交叉验证研究方案

药物使用在很大程度上加剧了澳大利亚人的疾病负担，与殖民相关的因素，如耻辱和创伤，加剧了土著和托雷斯海峡岛民的危害。要解决这一差距，需要在文化上可接受、有效和可靠的筛查工具，以参与者熟悉的语言提供，以识别和支持那些有风险的人。本议定书描述了一项研究，目的是在Pitjantjatjara验证一种适应文化的筛查工具——酒精、吸烟和物质介入筛查测试（ASSIST），以检测与物质相关的危害风险。招募将在南澳大利亚偏远、农村和城市的各种土著健康和福利机构进行。符合条件的参与者（18-65岁）将被简要介绍，并在征得同意的情况下，随机在iPad上完成ASSIST应用程序，并与健康专业人员和Pitjantjatjara翻译进行半结构化、絮语式的诊断访谈（见尾注1）。面谈将评估一系列临床定义的物质使用障碍（基于DSM-5-TR和ICD-11标准）。所有参与者将被要求再次完成应用程序（在7到28天之间）以评估可靠性，而风险最高的参与者子集也将接受独立临床医生的专家评估，作为有效性的第二次检查。有效和可靠的评估工具对于检测危险和有害物质的使用是必不可少的。如果有效，这款应用程序有可能通过解决可改变的健康风险因素，为社区主导的缩小健康差距的努力做出贡献。试验注册anzctr: ACTRN12625000413426。开放科学框架预注册：https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/GNZAY.Version控制号协议版本1.1,2025年6月23日。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Contemporary Clinical Trials Communications Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics-Pharmacology

CiteScore

2.70

自引率

6.70%

发文量

146

审稿时长

20 weeks

期刊介绍： Contemporary Clinical Trials Communications is an international peer reviewed open access journal that publishes articles pertaining to all aspects of clinical trials, including, but not limited to, design, conduct, analysis, regulation and ethics. Manuscripts submitted should appeal to a readership drawn from a wide range of disciplines including medicine, life science, pharmaceutical science, biostatistics, epidemiology, computer science, management science, behavioral science, and bioethics. Contemporary Clinical Trials Communications is unique in that it is outside the confines of disease specifications, and it strives to increase the transparency of medical research and reduce publication bias by publishing scientifically valid original research findings irrespective of their perceived importance, significance or impact. Both randomized and non-randomized trials are within the scope of the Journal. Some common topics include trial design rationale and methods, operational methodologies and challenges, and positive and negative trial results. In addition to original research, the Journal also welcomes other types of communications including, but are not limited to, methodology reviews, perspectives and discussions. Through timely dissemination of advances in clinical trials, the goal of Contemporary Clinical Trials Communications is to serve as a platform to enhance the communication and collaboration within the global clinical trials community that ultimately advances this field of research for the benefit of patients.