An Evaluation of the Pink Cloud Application in Post- Treatment Substance Use Disorder Support

Loyola Marymount University

Status: Enrolling

Conditions: Substance Use

Treatments: Behavioral: Pink Cloud; Behavioral: Active Control

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT07042451

R44DA061662 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Details and patient eligibility

About

This randomized controlled trial (RCT) will evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of Pink Cloud, a mobile health application designed to support recovery from substance and alcohol use disorders (SUD/AUD). The app provides access to over 245,000 in-person and virtual 12-Step meetings, along with features such as a sobriety counter, daily planner, and personal inventory tools. In this study, 1,410 participants in various stages of recovery will be randomly assigned to receive either access to the Pink Cloud app or to a control condition. Participants will complete follow-up assessments at 1, 3, and 6 months. Primary outcomes include number of days sober and frequency of drug and alcohol problems. Secondary outcomes include meeting attendance, proportion of sober individuals in one's social network, and engagement in recovery-related activities. The investigators hypothesize that participants in the Pink Cloud group will report more days sober and fewer substance use problems than those in the control group, and that they will also report attending more meetings, having a greater proportion of sober peers, and engaging more frequently in recovery activities.

Enrollment: 1,410 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Participant is 18 years of age or older
• Participant is willing to attend a 12-Step or peer-to-peer recovery meeting (in person or virtual) within the next week
• Participant owns a personal smartphone with cellular service
• Participant is a permanent resident of the United States
• Participant feels comfortable reading and understanding written English in everyday situations
• Participant has consumed alcohol and/or used drugs (excluding tobacco or prescribed medication) at some point in their life, but not within the past couple of days
• Participant is not currently attending outpatient or residential treatment for substance and/or alcohol use
• Participant does not have a plan to enter substance and/or alcohol treatment in the next 30 days
• Participant has been invited by the research team to either the intervention or control condition and redeemed their subscription code.
• Informed consent is provided

Exclusion criteria

• Participant is younger than 18 years of age
• Participant is unwilling to attend a 12-Step or peer-to-peer recovery meeting (in person or virtual) within the next week
• Participant does not own a personal smartphone with cellular service
• Participant is not a permanent resident of the United States
• Participant does not feel comfortable reading and understanding written English in everyday situations
• Participant has consumed alcohol or used drugs (excluding tobacco or prescribed medication) within the past couple of days
• Participant has never consumed alcohol or used drugs
• Participant is currently attending outpatient or residential treatment for substance and/or alcohol use
• Participant has a plan to enter substance and/or alcohol treatment in the next 30 days
• Participant was not invited by the research team or did not redeem their assigned subscription code
• Informed consent is not provided

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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1,410 participants in 2 patient groups

Pink Cloud

Experimental group

Description:

Participants in this arm will receive access to a mobile application designed to support ongoing recovery from substance and alcohol use disorders. The app includes tools that promote engagement with 12-Step recovery principles and offer self-monitoring features. Participants can integrate the app into their recovery efforts as they see fit throughout the study period.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Pink Cloud

Active Control

Active Comparator group

Description:

Participants in this arm will receive access to a website containing curated recovery-related materials. These resources are intended to offer general support for individuals in recovery, without emphasizing any specific program or approach. Participants are free to explore and use the content as they choose.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Active Control