Brief Description
The Tobacco, Alcohol, Prescription Medication, and Other Substance Use Tool 2 (TAPS-2) is a brief assessment designed to evaluate substance use and identify the level of risk for specific substances (nicotine, alcohol, marijuana, cocaine/crack/methamphetamine, heroin, prescription opiate pain reliever, prescription anxiety or sleep medication, ADHD medication, other illegal or recreational drugs). Following a positive screen on the initial TAPS-1, the TAPS-2 measure is administered to identify the particular substances being used and assess the severity of use. The TAPS-2 categorizes substance use into risk levels, ranging from "no use in the past 3 months” to “higher risk.” This tool plays a crucial role in determining the need for further clinical evaluation and intervention based on the severity of use identified during the screening process.
Assessment Administration Type
Self-report
Number of questions
28 items. The original TAPS-2 includes 9 questions and 19 subquestions.
Age Range for Administration
12+
Recommended Frequency of Administration
Every three months
Summary of Scoring and Interpretations
Scoring the TAPS-2 involves evaluating patient responses to specific substance-related questions. The scores are categorized as follows: a score of 0 is given for every “no” response while a score of 1 is given for every “yes” response. The total score produced by Blueprint should be ignored, and the focus should be on the subscale scores, each of which correspond to a specific substance. Each substance that is assessed in the measure has at least 3 questions assigned to it to create its own subscale. Subscale scores are interpreted as follows:
Score | Interpretation |
0 | No substance use in the past 3 months |
1 | Suggested problem use |
2+ | Higher risk, potential SUD diagnosis according to DSM-5 criteria |
The TAPS-2 has adequate diagnostic sensitivity (>70%) for tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana, at the 2+ cutoff score. However, for other substances, further assessment is recommended if the score is 1 or higher. A score of 2+ indicates a high priority for additional evaluation, given its strong predictive value for most substance classes.
Blueprint Adjustments
The original TAPS-2 assessment incorporates a structure that includes 9 main questions about use of a particular substance followed by subquestions on use-related behavior of that substance. Blueprint is unable to visually incorporate a subquestion format. All questions are numbered sequentially; thus there appears to be 28 items on the TAPS-2 in Blueprint.
The final question on the TAPS-2 asks the respondent to list any other drugs used in the past 3 months. If a respondent indicates "Yes" on question 27 when taking the assessment on Blueprint, they also have the option to write in any substances used on question 28, although it is recommended that the clinician follow up verbally to inquire about other drugs used.
Clinical Considerations
Estimated time for completion: 6-9 minutes
A limitation of the assessment is it has one question that requests response based on sex assigned at birth using a binary category; thus, this may not be inclusive for those who don’t identify with either category listed.
TAPS-1, which the TAPS-2 serves as the follow up for, is also available on Blueprint.
The TAPS-2 is meant to enhance clinical decision-making. It should not serve as the sole basis for making a diagnosis.
Citation
Relevant Articles + Further Resources
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