Florida Node Alliance of the Drug Abuse Clinic Trials Network

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This is an application for years 11-15 to expand the Florida Node into the Florida Node Alliance (FNA) of NIDA's CTN. We are building on our past record of success in leading and co-leading CTN trials in the areas of family-based treatment/adolescents, HIV testing and counseling, interventions for Hispanic drug users, supporting our community treatment programs (CTPs) in participating in 7 CTN trials in the past 5 years, and leading regional dissemination activities. The collaboration between scientists and CTPs has been the foundation of our Node and is the mission of the FNA. The FNA has expanded in geography, scientific expertise, and type of participating CTP. We retain our five CTPs in Florida and have recruited CTPs in Colorado, Georgia, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. The FNA now incorporates internationally renowned researchers in the fields of adolescents/pediatrics, HIV, combined behavioral/pharmacological treatments, information technology, health economics, and physical activity. Our partnerships have been expanded to include emergency departments, sexually-transmitted-disease/public health clinics, and HIV Inpatient/outpatient care sites. Veterans Affairs facilities, and other primary care providers. We have a total of 48 CTPs in the FNA. FNA also has a major commitment to expanding CTN benefits to Latin America including mentoring and training the emerging Mexico CTN Node. Our research infrastructure supports the development and implementation of clinical trials to answer a broad spectrum of transitional research questions across a wide variety of treatment settings and diverse patient populations. Dissemination partners facilitate training in evidence-based treatments in our service areas. We propose a research agenda that will (1) blend substance abuse treatment within health care settings; (2) involve family members in the treatment of substance use disorders; (3) use information technologies to improve treatment attractiveness, quality, and cost-effectiveness; (4) combine pharmacotherapies and behavioral interventions, (5) use exercise to enhance treatment outcomes among adolescents, and (6) integrate HIV and other infectious disease testing in care settings commonly used by individuals with substance use disorders.