Evidence.

The effectiveness of CHESS Health solutions is backed by a robust body of evidence, including published research, customer case studies, and successful implementation results.

In clinical trials and in provider implementations, individuals using the Connections App had more treatment services, completed IOP treatment 20% more often, and were 30% less likely to drop-out early from OP treatment.

A Medicaid MCO did a retrospective claims analysis comparing members who used Connection App and found these members were 2.9x less likely to incur a readmission to a residential/inpatient level of care than members – the resulting cost of care savings averaged $278 per member per month.

Using the app for longer than 30 days correlates to a 40% reduction in risk factor measures (difficulty sleeping, relationship troubles, struggle with cravings, etc.) measured through weekly patient assessments.

Our platform was co-founded by University of Wisconsin professor David H. Gustafson, PhD, who developed the “ACHESS” smartphone app and validated its effectiveness in multiple studies. We have since added a partnership with Yale School of Medicine professor Kathleen M. Carroll, PhD, with the goal of commercializing her innovative, clinically validated online programs for sustained recovery.

Peer-reviewed Journal Articles Featuring CHESS Health Technology

Oklahoma Study Shows Positive Outcomes with Outpatient App

In 2021, the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (ODMHSAS) partnered with CHESS Health to deploy prevention, outreach, and recovery support resources to providers across the state. In 2022, ODHMSAS’s Director David Wright conducted a study that concluded that outpatient participants using CHESS Health’s Connections smartphone app experienced better treatment outcomes. When…

Pharmacotherapy and Mobile Health for Veterans with Substance Use Disorders

The Mobile Patient Opportunities for Wellness, Engagement, and Recovery (mPOWER) project was developed to explore alternative therapies for a high-risk, high-need population prone to frequent addiction crisis, emergency medical, and psychiatric services utilization. The study incorporated patient feedback, satisfaction levels, utilization statistics, and population readmission rates as outcome measures. This research report presents findings from…

App Usage Increases Treatment Compliance and Sessions for Women in Appalachia

Longer retention in treatment is associated with positive outcomes. For women, who suffer worse drug-related problems than men, social technologies, which are more readily adopted by women, may offer promise. This naturalistic study examined whether a smartphone-based relapse-prevention system, A-CHESS (Addiction-Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System), could improve retention for women with substance use disorders in an impoverished rural setting.
View All Research

CHESS Health Case Studies

GRAND Mental Health in Tulsa set up its contingency management program to grant participants three points immediately upon completion of each session. Points translate into dollars that are available automatically on a reloadable debit VISA card provided by the program to the participants. 

Optimizing Treatment Adherence with Rewards

About 70% of individuals in the Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP) at GRAND Mental Health in Tulsa, OK (GRAND Tulsa), stayed in treatment until completion after their leaders implemented CHESS Health’s Rewards module, part of its eRecovery solution. The Rewards module is integrated into and accessible in the Connections recovery app, allowing providers to quickly and…
Enabling Staff to Address Triggers for High Drug Use and Overdose in Rural West Virginia

Addressing High Drug Use and Overdose in Rural West Virginia

Quarantines and closings triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated long-standing difficulties facing care providers in remote areas of West Virginia, a population already facing some of the highest rates of substance use disorder in the nation. During the pandemic, drug overdose deaths in West Virginia almost doubled.  Staff at the Southwestern Regional Day Report Center…
Chaves County CASA focuses on providing resources to community members with substance use disorder and addiction

Rural Realities: Tackling Mental Health and Substance Use in Chaves County

Residents in rural Chaves County in southeastern New Mexico are facing a crisis – high poverty levels combined with mental health issues and substance use disorder rates which are among the highest in the nation. Service providers there, struggling with a dearth of in-person resources, have turned to CHESS Health to bolster efforts to identify…
View All Case Studies

CHESS Health Implementation Results and White Papers

Substance use disorder (SUD) involving opioids, methamphetamine, and fentanyl have been wreaking havoc across the country, leaving state leaders searching for answers to stem the tide.

Oklahoma Deploys Innovative Initiative to Address Statewide Addiction Crisis

Oklahoma faced a common problem for states with a spread-out population and many individuals with substance use disorder (SUD). It is difficult to connect, coordinate, and offer resources for providers to assist people in identifying the need for help and working through recovery. About 300,000 Oklahomans struggle with SUD, but only one in three is…
View All White Papers

Want to
learn more?

Get in touch with us to hear more about how we can help your organization.

Let’s Chat

Read FCOI Policy.