Introduction:
Clean Slate Clinic is a social enterprise with a mission to remove stigma, geographical and financial barriers to accessing alcohol and other drug treatments. It has done this by developing a model of home alcohol and other drug withdrawal and recovery delivered entirely through telehealth.


Method:
The University of Sydney have evaluated the model’s adoptability, acceptability and effectiveness (primary objectives).

81 participants were screened for a prospective 28-day observational study conducted over a 12-month period. 50 people completed detox. Exclusion criteria included history of seizures, complex co-morbidities, suicide or family violence risk, lack of support person or secure housing. Outcomes were retrieved from clinic documentation and questionnaires.


Key Findings:
Participants who completed the 3-month follow-up questionnaire were highly satisfied (n=7) with the service. At 1-month post detox 84% (42) of clients were “Meeting Alcohol Goals”, 14% (7) had “Reduced Alcohol Dependence” and 2% (1) had relapsed. The mean number of standard drinks consumed weekly decreased from 76 at baseline to 5 at 1-month post-detox, 19 at 3 months and 24 at 6 months. Kessler Psychological Distress (K10) scores ranged from 24.61 (high psychological distress) at baseline to 16 (moderate psychological distress) at 1-month post-detox and 15.71 at 3-months post-detox. There were no adverse events reported.


Discussions and Conclusions:
The telehealth model of service delivery has been evaluated as highly adoptable and acceptable. Results indicate that the Clean Slate Clinic is a feasible model for enabling participants to achieve their goals (84%), substantially reducing alcohol intake and reducing psychological distress.



Implications for Practice or Policy:
A telehealth model of service delivery for substance withdrawal and recovery has the potential to substantially improve access to services and offer a sustainable solution for regional & remote areas.