META-ANALYSIS OF DRUG ABUSE TREATMENT OUTCOME STUDIES

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The goal of this project is to provide the database infrastructure and software tools necessary to enable quantitative integration of published drug abuse treatment outcome studies. These facilities will allow health services researchers to take advantage of meta-analytic techniques to gain clearer insight into drug abuse treatment effectiveness than what can be achieved through the traditional narrative research overview. The Phase I project will consist of several activities designed to establish a baseline meta-analysis framework, including: (1) collection and abstraction of the relevant literature; (2) design and construction of a database to store the abstracted study parameters; (3) selection and integration of appropriate statistical software; and (4) development of mechanisms for regular updating and dissemination of the database and associated software. Building on this framework, Phase II of the project will focus on carrying out a variety of meta-analyses in order to generate estimates of treatment effectiveness that take into account such covariates as drug type, treatment modality, and client demographics. The Phase III commercialization activities might include on-going maintenance and enhancement of the drug abuse treatment outcome research database as well as adaptation of the approach to other important public health domains.