Health Focused Motivational Treatment for Alcohol Dependent Veterans

The purpose of this study is to determine whether a health focused motivational intervention will reduce alcohol use for dependent veterans who are receiving outpatient alcohol and drug treatment.

The early months of addiction treatment are a high risk time for relapse. The purpose of this study is to examine whether a health-related intervention delivered in an individual session with a therapist once per month in the initial 4 months of addiction treatment will reduce alcohol use among veterans already enrolled in weekly outpatient treatment group at the VA San Diego Healthcare System. In order to answer this question, study participants will be randomly assigned to one of three study conditions: 1) The Health Motivational condition that receives individual personalized health feedback and motivational activities, 2) the Health Education condition that receives individual education about health problems associated with the heavy alcohol use, and 3) the treatment as usual group that will receive no additional treatment. All participants will be assessed on a monthly basis for 4 months to evaluate alcohol use, drug use, and health status.

Inclusion Criteria: - Veterans receiving outpatient treatment at the VA San Diego Healthcare System Alcohol and Drug Treatment Program for a diagnosis of Alcohol Dependence Exclusion Criteria: Diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder or Psychotic Disorder.