Authors (including presenting author) :
Chan J(1), Cheung CP(1), Sezto NW(1), Wong KK(1)
Affiliation :
(1)Occupational Therapy Department, United Christian Hospital
Introduction :
People with substance use disorder (SUD) manifest cognitive deficits which affect their everyday functioning. The research on cognitive training program for SUD is limited and no particular program in Hong Kong has been studied. Occupational Therapists in United Christian Hospital developed the Mobile Functional Cognition Program (MFCP) and pilot tested in 2015-2017.
Objectives :
To investigate the effectiveness of the MFCP. We hypothesized that participants going through MFCP would improve cognitive and everyday functioning compared to those who received social activities.
Methodology :
The research is a randomized controlled trial. Service users at the Counselling Centers for Psychotropic Substance Abusers (CCPSAs), the Drug Treatment and Rehabilitation Centers (DTRCs), the Methadone Clinic, and the Substance Abuse Clinic at United Christian Hospital were recruited into this study. Participants’ cognitive function and everyday functioning were measured by Cognistat (NCSE) and Canadian Occupational Performance Measure (COPM) at baseline and after treatment. A repeated measure analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare the treatment effect of MFCP versus social activities.
Result & Outcome :
A total of 110 service users have been included. 53 service users were randomly assigned into the experimental group (engaged in MFCP) and 57 service users were in the control group (engaged in social activities). Participants in both the experimental and control group showed improvement in their cognitive and everyday functioning after treatment. The MFCP’s group exhibited a greater effect size than the social activities. We recommend further research, such as longitudinal study, to differentiate the effect of MFCP and social activities. Nevertheless, the MFCP is found to be robust and practical for daily clinical use.
