Cannabis Use Disorder Identification Test – Revised (CUDIT-R): Clinical Utility Education for Psychiatric Providers

Abstract

Purpose: This quality improvement project aimed to educate a group of psychiatric providers working at a local addiction and behavioral health treatment center on the benefits and clinical utility of a cannabis use disorder screening tool in an inpatient setting. Background: To improve behavioral health outcomes, practical, evidence-based screening tools have been used in a variety of behavioral healthcare settings. One such tool, the Cannabis Use Disorder Identification Test-Revised (CUDIT-R), has proven efficacy regarding DSM-5-TR cannabis use disorder criteria. Considering the emotional and neurocognitive detriments that have ample supportive evidence regarding cannabis use, along with the more widespread accessibility of cannabis currently backed by US State and Federal policy, provider awareness regarding improved screening practices is pertinent. Methods: This quality improvement DNP project employed a pretest-posttest design, including Likert-style multiple-choice questions, which were used to evaluate a live, in-person PowerPoint presentation on the CUDIT-R. Results: A total of ten psychiatric provider participants, all over the age of 18, were recruited from a weekly staff meeting, and all ten completed pre-and posttest surveys. Posttest data showed a significant increase in perceived knowledge, perceived benefits, intent to adopt into daily practice, and DSM-5-TR criteria alignment of the CUDIT-R. The survey question pertaining to the need for further education with respect to the CUDIT-R data was skewed and did not show statistical significance.