Opioid Use Disorder
Conditions
Keywords
women, criminal justice, substance use, opioid use disorder
Brief summary
Opioid-related overdose deaths and incarceration rates have skyrocketed and have disproportionately affected women. Despite having a higher burden of substance use disorders and HIV/AIDS than criminal justice-involved (CJI) men, CJI women are less likely to have access to substance use and HIV treatment. The planned research aims to improve how women in the criminal justice system connect to and stay in drug treatment. This will be done by creating and putting into practice a well-researched program specifically designed for women, considering their experiences with trauma. The program incorporates several best practices in substance use treatment such as the use of Certified Peer Recovery Specialists (CRS) as needed social support, assisting women who do not have stable housing in finding housing, overdose response training, and reducing known barriers to women by assisting with transportation and childcare. In addition, half of the women will be randomly selected to participate in a 12-session trauma support group led by CRS which uses the evidence-based curriculum, Beyond Trauma, which was specifically designed for women who use drugs. The aforementioned components are rarely offered in tandem with substance use treatment, and as such, this research is assessing if having this comprehensive program is linked with better substance use and social outcomes. The overall goal is to reduce the problem of opioid addiction and overdoses among women who have recently been involved in the criminal justice system and to reduce the barriers to opioid addiction treatment.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALTrauma-informed case management for women who use drugs
This intervention assesses the adequacy in which components of the gender-specific and trauma-informed intervention function together using a sample of 50 community-recruited CJI women who use opioids illicitly.
BEHAVIORALCRS Only Intervention
This intervention assesses the adequacy in which components of the gender-specific case management by certified peer recovery specialists function together using a sample of 50 community-recruited CJI women who use opioids illicitly.
Sponsors
Abenaa Jones, Ph.D.
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH
Masking
NONE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
FEMALE
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
1. Female 2. 18+ years of age 3. Pennsylvania resident and intends to remain in or near Harrisburg, Carlisle, York or Lancaster areas for the duration of the study 4. Use opioids illicitly 5. Interested in starting drug treatment that uses medication to stop opioid use OR are currently in a drug treatment program for opioid use that uses medication but feel that without additional support they won't be able to continue with the program 6. Not currently pregnant, planning to become pregnant, or breastfeeding during the study period 7. Released from a jail or prison within the past 12 months or have other criminal justice involvement (arrests, probation, or parole) within the past 12 months.
Exclusion criteria
1. Not female 2. Under 18 years of age 3. Not a Pennsylvania resident or no intention to remain in or near Harrisburg/Carlisle/York or Lancaster areas for the duration of the study 4. Do not use opioids illicitly 5. Not interested in MOUD to stop opioid use 6. No arrests, probation or parole, nor released from a jail or prison within the past 12 months 7. Pregnant, planning to become pregnant, or breastfeeding during the study period
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Number of participants enrolled and retained in the intervention | 6 months of follow-up for participants | We will assess the feasibility of this pilot study by assessing the number of participants recruited and retained for the entire six-month duration of the intervention. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Preliminary substance use outcomes | 6 months of follow-up for participants | The investigators will assess participants' urine drug screen results at baseline, 3-month follow-up, and 6-month follow-up. |
Countries
United States
Contacts
PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORAbenaa Jones, Ph.D.
Penn State University
Outcome results
None listed