Preliminary feasibility and acceptability of alcohol behavioral couple therapy delivered via home-based telehealth

Purpose: There is unequivocal evidence supporting the feasibility, acceptability, and non-inferiority of evidence-based mental health (i.e., PTSD, depression, couple therapy) treatment modalities delivered via web-based telehealth (e.g., videoconferencing). However, there is a surprising scarcity of research examining telehealth delivery of evidence-based alcohol use disorder (AUD) interventions in any population. The purpose of this exploratory study is to begin to address this longstanding gap in the literature by examining the preliminary feasibility and acceptability of Alcohol Behavioral Couple Therapy (ABCT) delivered via telehealth. Method: Data were collected from participants (N = 19 couples;38 participants) who completed ABCT via telehealth as part of an ongoing randomized controlled trial during the COVID-19 pandemic. Self-report survey data were collected online via REDCap upon treatment completion (ABCT session 12). Data: Most items utilized a 5-point Likert-type scale (1 = least agreement to 5 = most agreement). Results: Findings indicate that both participants (M = 101.29, SD = 9.9) and therapists (M = 103.21, SD = 8.9) reported high therapeutic alliance as measured by the Helping Alliance Questionnaire. Participants reported a high level of positivity (M = 4.84, SD = 0.37) and comfort (M = 4.61, SD = 0.60) with telehealth delivery. The vast majority of participants (97.4%;n = 37) indicated that they would recommend telehealth to a family member or friend based on their experience with this study. Most participants reported that they perceived the same or better effectiveness of treatment via telehealth compared to in-person (84.2%, n = 32), and most found telehealth to be more convenient (84.2%, n = 32). All participants (100%) found telehealth to be equally or more accessible than in-person treatment. One participant reported that they did less homework via telehealth and just two participants reported that they dedicated less time to their treatment. Six participants (15.8%) reported that they would have preferred in-person treatment to telehealth. Findings will be updated to include participants who are and will enroll in the project in the coming months. Additional qualitative responses from participants will also be reported. Conclusions: Although preliminary, these exploratory findings highlight promising feasibility and acceptability of delivering AUD treatment to couples via home-based videoconferencing telehealth. It is important for future research to identify elements of behavioral AUD interventions that might benefit from telehealth adaptation compared to in-person treatment delivery.