What is a common screening tool used at intake to identify possible substance use problems?

• A. PHQ-9
• B. CAGE-AID or AUDIT
• C. Beck Depression Inventory
• D. Wechsler Memory Scale

Answer: (B)

Screening at intake should quickly flag potential substance use problems, guiding whether a full assessment is needed. Tools designed specifically for substance use, like CAGE-AID and AUDIT, are ideal for this purpose because they are brief, validated, and focused on substance-related risk. CAGE-AID uses four yes/no items about cutting down, annoyance by criticism, guilt, and eye-opening drinks, with the drug-use version expanding to include substances. AUDIT provides ten questions that assess frequency and quantity of use, binge drinking, and related problems, yielding a risk score to guide next steps. In contrast, depression scales and cognitive tests measure mood symptoms or memory/cognition, not screening for substance use, so they don’t serve as the best first-step screen for substance-use problems.