Women and Trauma Multi-Site Study in NIDA’s Clinical Trials Network

This NIDA-funded clinical trial used a randomized, controlled, repeated measures design to assess the effectiveness of Seeking Safety (SS) compared with a control treatment (Women’s Health Education, WHE), in addition to standard outpatient substance abuse treatment on psychiatric symptoms and substance use outcomes. Seeking Safety is an integrated cognitive-behavior therapy for the treatment of PTSD and substance use disorders. Women’s Health education was developed for this trial to serve as a credible comparison with the rationale being the connection between trauma and physical health issues. Participants were women receiving treatment at community substance abuse programs at six sites across the country.