1. PATROL Pilot Study: Findings and Future Plans
Presented at 135th APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition
November 5, 2007
Washington, DC
Presented by Michael Pemberton, Ph.D
3040 Cornwallis Street · Research Triangle Park, NC Phone: · ·

2. Goals of PATROL Pilot Study
Test the feasibility of rolling out a Web-based alcohol education program in the military
Assess the effectiveness of PATROL in reducing alcohol misuse among active duty personnel
Pilot study utilized eight installations
Army: Fort Bliss, Fort Sill
Navy: Hampton Roads - Norfolk, Ventura County
Air Force: Hurlburt Field, Tyndall Air Force Base
Marine Corps: Camp Pendleton, Cherry Point

3. Study Design Surveys at three time points
Baseline, 1 month follow-up, 6 month follow-up
Assign personnel to one of four study conditions:
Alcohol Savvy
Drinker’s Check-Up
Drinking Risk Level
Low risk (AUDIT < 8) received Alcohol Savvy
High risk (AUDIT => 8) received Drinker’s Check-Up
Control

4. Study Design “Real World” Challenges
One installation was restricted to be “program” only
Personnel were randomly assigned to one of the three program groups
Two installations were restricted to be “control” only
Had to allow for those with low-speed internet connections
Alcohol Savvy required high-speed connection
Personnel with low-speed connections were assigned to Drinker’s Check-Up

5. Barriers and Facilitators to Participation
Barriers to participation
Participation in PATROL was voluntary
RTI could not offer incentives to personnel
Personnel had to provide personal identifiers
No incentives offered by installations for participation in follow-up survey
Facilitators to participation
Incentives offered by installations (i.e., Hurlburt Field offered a 1-day pass)
Strong top-down support from individual commanders

6. Number of Participants
Time
Component
Number
Baseline
Registered on the study Website
4,263
Completed the baseline survey
3,912
Program group (completed one of the Web programs following the baseline survey)
2,993
Control group (did not complete Web program following baseline)
919
1 Month Follow-Up
Returned to study Website for 1-month follow-up
1,431
Completed the 1-month follow-up survey
1,371

7. Military and Demographic Characteristics of Sample
Baseline Sample
Follow-Up Sample
Characteristic
Number
Percent
Service
Army
164
4.2 55
3.8
Navy
1,589
40.6
459
32.1
Air Force
1,351
37.1
715
50.0
Marine Corps
708
18.2
202
14.1
Gender
Male
3,236
82.7
1,081
78.9
Female
676
17.3
290
21.2

8. Military and Demographic Characteristics of Sample
Baseline Sample
Follow-Up Sample
Characteristic
Number
Percent
Pay Grade
E1–E3 (junior enlisted)
751
19.2
171
12.5
E4–E6
2,298
58.7
778
56.7
E7–E9 (senior enlisted)
431
11.0
233
17.0
O1–O3 (junior officers)
319
8.2
131
9.5
O4–O10 (senior officers)
110
2.8 57
4.2
Deployed in Past Year
Yes
2,907
74.3
1,004
73.2 No
25.7
367
26.8

9. Findings from Baseline and 1-Month Follow-Up Surveys

10. Prevalence of Alcohol Use Among Baseline Sample
* 5 (4 for women) or more drinks on single occasion at least once in past 30 days
**5 (4 for women) or more drinks on single occasion 4 or more times in past 30 days
*** AUDIT score of 8 or higher

11. Program Effects Analysis
Longitudinal growth models
Key test: Group x Time interactions
Also tested “simple slopes” (changes over time within each condition)
Combined Program Effects
Analysis question: Did those who completed a program show reductions in alcohol misuse relative to controls?
Collapsed all three program conditions, compared with control
Individual Program Effects
Analysis question: Did any of the three program conditions show greater reductions in alcohol misuse than the others?
Compared each individual condition with control

12. Combined Program Effect on Number of Days Drank Alcohol
No program effect for frequency of drinking
No change in either program or control group

13. Combined Program Effect on Proportion of Binge Drinkers
Statistically significant program effect
Significant reduction in program group, no change in control group

14. Combined Program Effect on Proportion of Heavy Drinkers
Statistically significant program effect
Significant reduction in program group, no change in control group

15. Combined Program Effect on Peak Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC)
Statistically significant program effect
Significant reduction in program group, no change in control group

16. Program Effect for Individual Conditions on Proportion of Binge Drinkers
Statistically significant program effect for DCU
Significant reduction from baseline to follow-up for each program condition

17. Program Effect for Individual Conditions on Proportion of Heavy Drinkers
Statistically significant program effect for DCU, “marginal” effect (p = .051) for AS
Significant reduction from baseline to follow-up for each program condition

18. Program Effect for Individual Conditions on Peak BAC
Statistically significant program effect for DCU
Significant reduction from baseline to follow-up for each program condition

19. Program Effect for Individual Conditions on Proportion of Heavy Drinkers, High Risk Drinkers Only
Statistically significant program effect for DCU, AS, and RL
Significant reduction from baseline to follow-up for each program condition

20. Conclusions
The Web is a feasible method of providing interventions to active duty military personnel
PATROL led to significant reductions in multiple measures of alcohol use at the 1-month follow-up
Mixed results by program condition
More significant program effects for DCU
No one program led to a markedly greater decrease in alcohol consumption
Providing a program tailored to the risk-level of the user did not increase the effectiveness
Programs worked only for high-risk drinkers

21. Limitations
These pilot data are based on a “convenience sample” of volunteers
Cannot generalize findings to total United States DoD or the Services
Pure random assignment was not possible
Data are largely from the Navy and Air Force
Lower than expected response rate at 1- month follow-up reduced statistical power to find significant program effects

22. Next Steps Analyses of 6-month follow-up data
Surveys completed by approximately 950 respondents
Initial analyses show little change from 1-month follow-up
Mediation and moderation analyses

23. Next Steps
Currently in discussions with DoD regarding further rollout / evaluation of the programs
Suggestions
Personalize the programs for each Service
Limited rollout more similar to general rollout, with evaluation
Programs used as “stand-alones” rather than as a package

24. Questions?