Digital Aftercare Assessed: An Evaluation of the Pink Cloud Application in Post-Treatment Substance Use Disorder Support.

NIH RePORTER · NIH · R44 · $980,000 · view on reporter.nih.gov ↗

Abstract

Project Summary This Direct to Phase II SBIR initiative aims to comprehensively validate the Pink Cloud digital platform, a groundbreaking mobile health application linked to the world's largest database of substance and alcohol use disorder (SUD and AUD) 12-Step program treatment resources. This innovative platform, designed to significantly reduce accessibility barriers and treatment disparities across diverse economic and demographic groups, offers a user-friendly interface with a suite of robust features. These include a centralized database with over 245,000 in-person and virtual meetings, a sobriety counter, customizable daily planners, resentment diaries, and personal inventory lists, all aimed at promoting comprehensive care in SUD/AUD treatment. The Pink Cloud app, available for free and with additional premium services at an affordable rate of $1 per month, emphasizes user privacy and does not require personal information, usernames, or social media connections. This commitment to confidentiality has contributed to the app's widespread adoption, with over 350,000 users across 104 countries, including over 6,000 premium service customers. Despite its extensive user base and anecdotal evidence of its effectiveness in promoting sobriety and aiding in recovery, Pink Cloud has not yet been subjected to a rigorous, controlled clinical evaluation to ascertain its efficacy in the treatment of SUD/AUD. The proposed study seeks to address this gap. It is structured in two distinct phases: the first phase involves the research team enhancing the app with new features to improve user experience and marketability (AIM 1). This includes the addition of automated meeting attendance tracking, provider search functionality, and a 12-Step AI chatbot, and the introduction of coupon codes that will broaden the app's appeal to treatment centers and insurance companies. The second phase constitutes a comprehensive RCT with 1,410 participants in various stages of recovery. This trial is pivotal in determining whether access to Pink Cloud (vs. control) can influence the duration of sobriety over a 6-month period and help to reduce substance use problems (AIM 2). Potential mediators of these effects, such as meeting attendance history, sober social support network, and engagement in recovery behaviors will also be evaluated. We will conduct an in-depth analysis of user engagement within the app, identifying factors, such as race/ethnicity, gender, substance use history that may predict participant interactions with its features with the RCT participants randomized to receive the Pink Cloud app (AIM 3). Findings from the RCT will then inform the development of Pink Cloud’s new marketing plan and materials (AIM 4) promoting the app as a tool treatment center can provide their client to improve recovery and individuals can access on their own to accomplish the same. With an estimated market of 60 million people, the potential impact of Pink Cloud in transforming S...

Key facts

NIH application ID
11006659
Project number
1R44DA061662-01
Recipient
PINK CLOUD LLC
Principal Investigator
Joseph W. Labrie
Activity code
R44
Funding institute
NIH
Fiscal year
2024
Award amount
$980,000
Award type
1
Project period
2024-09-15 → 2026-08-31