Utility of the Time-Line Follow-Back to assess substance use among homeless adults.
Assessing substance use of homeless persons is a critical task. This study examines the test-retest reliability, concurrent validity, and sensitivity to change of the Time-Line Follow-Back interview, a calendar instrument used to assess days and quantities of alcohol use and days of illicit drug use, in the multisite Collaborative Program to Prevent Homelessness (CPPH). The Time-Line Follow-Back was reliable for assessing use during the past month and the recent 6 months. Results from the Time-Line Follow-Back were correlated with other self-reports of use, with research diagnoses of substance use disorder, and with clinician ratings of severity of substance abuse. The Time-Line Follow-Back detected changes in clients with severe mental illness and in those with less severe psychiatric problems.
Sacks
Jo Ann Y
JA
National Development and Research Institutes, Inc. (NDRI), 71 West 23 Street-Fl. 8, New York, New York 10010, USA.
Drake
Robert E
RE
Williams
Valerie F
VF
Banks
Steven M
SM
Herrell
James M
JM
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D015897:Comorbidity; D017831:Diagnosis, Dual (Psychiatry); D005260:Female; D006703:Ill-Housed Persons / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015995:Prevalence; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology