Research has identified a number of effective components of treatment for alcohol and drug misuse and addiction. However, in order to ensure best practice and the maintenance of universal standards, continued monitoring and supervision of delivery is needed. This monitoring needs to be able to assess the extent to which effective methods are being used by therapists in routine practice. A number of instruments have previously been developed for treatment process evaluation (Madson & Campbell 2006). However, these tend either to focus on specific treatment types or be too lengthy for use in routine practice.

The aim of this study was to develop and validate a trans-theoretical scale that could allow for effective monitoring across a range of treatment types, and in a range of routine settings.

Key findings
• A literature review and three-round Delphi survey facilitated the development of a Brief Addiction Therapist Scale (BATS), designed to evaluate the delivery of substance use treatment in routine practice.
• Practitioner feedback, and validation in four clinical samples including two multi-site studies, suggests the scale has good psychometric properties and high inter-rater reliability.
• In initial feedback practitioners and experts have been positive, supporting its utility, ease of use and importance.