Innovation attributes and adoption decisions: perspectives from leaders of a national sample of addiction treatment organizations

Retention and dropout from sublingual and extended-release buprenorphine treatment: A comparative analysis of data from a nationally representative sample of commercially-insured people with opioid use disorder in the United States

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Maintenance on medications for opioid use disorder, particularly buprenorphine, is critical for reducing overdose risk and improving health outcomes in the United States. This study evaluates retention and dropout probabilities between sublingual buprenorphine (SL-BUP) and extended-release buprenorphine (XR-BUP) among commercially-insured individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD).

DESIGN AND SETTING

A retrospective cohort study using Meretive™ Markeskan® claims data from 2019 to 2020. A multi-state Markov model assessed transitions between treatment states over 12 months.

PARTICIPANTS

The study included 58,933 individuals aged 18-64 years with OUD, initiating SL-BUP (n = 57,520) or XR-BUP (n = 1,413). XR-BUP patients were divided into XR-BUP only (n = 684; 49 %) and XR-BUP with supplemental SL-BUP (XR-BUP+sSL; n = 729; 51 %).

MEASUREMENTS

Primary outcomes included probabilities of remaining in treatment or transitioning between states at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months. The impact of dosage and days of supply on retention was also examined.

RESULTS

The probability of permanent treatment dropout at 6 months was similar for SL-BUP (38.59 %, 95 % CI: 37.9 %-39.4 %) and XR-BUP (41.3 % 95 %CI: 36.8 %-46.1 %), yet the probability of remaining in treatment was significantly higher for SL-BUP than XR-BUP (49.5 %; 95 %CI: 48.8 %-50.1 % vs. 13.5 % 95 % CI: 10.5 %-16.5 %). The high proportion of individuals initially prescribed XR-BUP later transitioned to SL-BUP. Higher doses and longer days supplied of SL-BUP reduced dropout rates. Among patients receiving ≥16 mg/day and ≥28 days, dropout probabilities were 5.7 % (95 % CI: 5.4 %-6.0 %) at 1 month, 15.4 % (95 % CI: 14.8 %-16.2 %) at 3 months, 28.0 % (95 % CI: 26.9 %-29.2 %) at 6 months, and 47.8 % (95 %CI: 45.2 %-49.5 %) at 12 months. In contrast, patients prescribed <16 mg/day and <28 days had a 46.3 % (95 %CI: 45.0 %-47.6 %) dropout rate by 6 months.

CONCLUSION

SL-BUP demonstrates higher retention rates and lower dropout compared to XR-BUP in real-world settings. Optimizing SL-BUP dosing and providing extended supplies can improve retention and reduce treatment discontinuation.

Treatment outcomes associated with medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) among criminal justice-referred admissions to residential treatment in the U.S., 2015-2018

AIMS

To examine the use and association of medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) with treatment completion and retention for criminal justice referred (CJR) admissions to residential treatment.

METHODS

A retrospective analysis of the Treatment Episode Dataset-Discharge (TEDS-D; 2015-2018) for adults (N = 205,348) admitted to short-term (ST) (< 30 days) or long-term (LT) (>30 days) residential treatment for OUD. Outcomes were MOUD in treatment plans, and treatment completion and retention (ST >10 days; LT > 90 days). Logistic regression analyses were conducted separately for ST and LT settings.

RESULTS

CJR admissions were less likely to have MOUD than non-CJR admissions (ST, 11% vs. 21%; LT, 10% vs. 24%, respectively) and were more likely to complete and be retained in treatment. In ST settings, MOUD was associated with higher likelihood of treatment completion and retention. In LT settings, MOUD was associated with higher likelihood of treatment retention and lower likelihood of treatment completion. These associations tended to be slightly weaker for CJR admissions, with the exception of treatment completion in LT settings, but the moderating effect size of CJR status in all models was very small. Small differences in the moderating effect of CJR status by race and ethnicity were observed in LT settings.

CONCLUSIONS

MOUD is greatly under-utilized for CJR patients, and given that MOUD was associated with positive outcomes, there is a critical need to find ways to increase access to MOUD for CJR patients in residential treatment. Race and ethnicity appear to have relatively little impact on outcomes.

Cost analysis in implementation studies of evidence-based practices for mental health and substance use disorders: a systematic review

Background

This study is a systematic literature review of cost analyses conducted within implementation studies on behavioral health services. Cost analysis of implementing evidence-based practices (EBP) has become important within implementation science and is critical for bridging the research to practice gap to improve access to quality healthcare services. Costing studies in this area are rare but necessary since cost can be a barrier to implementation and sustainment of EBP.

Methods

We followed Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) methodology and applied the Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) checklist. Key search terms included: (1) economics, (2) implementation, (3) EBP, and (4) behavioral health. Terms were searched within article title and abstracts in: EconLit, SocINDEX, Medline, and PsychINFO. A total of 464 abstracts were screened independently by two authors and reduced to 37 articles using inclusion and exclusion criteria. After a full-text review, 18 articles were included.

Results

Findings were used to classify costs into direct implementation, direct services, and indirect implementation. While all studies included phases of implementation as part of their design, only five studies examined resources across multiple phases of an implementation framework. Most studies reported direct service costs associated with adopting a new practice, usually summarized as total EBP cost, cost per client, cost per clinician, and/or cost per agency. For studies with detailed analysis, there were eleven direct cost categories represented. For five studies that reported costs per child served, direct implementation costs varied from $886 to $9470 per child, while indirect implementation costs ranged from $897 to $3805 per child.

Conclusions

This is the first systematic literature review to examine costs of implementing EBP in behavioral healthcare settings. Since 2000, 18 studies were identified that included a cost analysis. Given a wide variation in the study designs and economic methods, comparison across studies was challenging, which is a major limitation in the field, as it becomes difficult to replicate studies or to estimate future costs to inform policy decisions related to budgeting. We recommend future economic implementation studies to consider standard economic costing methods capturing costs across implementation framework phases to support comparisons and replicability.

Hospital nursing leadership-led interventions increased genomic awareness and educational intent in Magnet settings

BACKGROUND

The Precision Medicine Initiative will accelerate genomic discoveries that improve health care, necessitating a genomic competent workforce.

PURPOSE

This study assessed leadership team (administrator/educator) year-long interventions to improve registered nurses' (RNs) capacity to integrate genomics into practice.

METHODS

We examined genomic competency outcomes in 8,150 RNs.

FINDINGS

Awareness and intention to learn more increased compared with controls. Findings suggest achieving genomic competency requires a longer intervention and support strategies such as infrastructure and policies. Leadership played a role in mobilizing staff, resources, and supporting infrastructure to sustain a large-scale competency effort on an institutional basis.

DISCUSSION

Results demonstrate genomic workforce competency can be attained with leadership support and sufficient time. Our study provides evidence of the critical role health-care leaders play in facilitating genomic integration into health care to improve patient outcomes. Genomics' impact on quality, safety, and cost indicate a leader-initiated national competency effort is achievable and warranted.

Bridging the Gap Between Research and Practice in Mental Health Service Settings: An Overview of Developments in Implementation Theory and Research

Twenty years after Sobell's (1996) influential call to integrate advances in behavior therapy into clinical settings, significant progress has been made in implementation science. In this narrative review, we provide an overview of implementation research findings and highlight recent findings that can inform efforts to bridge the gap between research and practice in mental health service settings. Key findings are summarized, organized according to levels of influence described in two implementation frameworks: The Exploration, Planning, Implementation, and Sustainment Framework (EPIS; Aarons et al., 2011) and the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR; Damschroder et al., 2009). Important levels of influence to consider when implementing new treatments include the outer context, inner context, characteristics of the individual, and characteristics of the innovation. Research on strategies to prepare clinicians to deliver evidence-based psychosocial treatments (EBPTs) and to address contextual barriers to implementation at each level is described, with discussion of implications for the implementation of EBPTs and next steps for research.

Decision-to-Implement Worksheet for Evidence-based Interventions: From the WWAMI Region Practice and Research Network

BACKGROUND

Health-related scientific discoveries are often not applied in clinical settings after publication, even when recommended by a trusted journal or professional association. This article describes an assessment tool we developed for use by primary care clinicians and practice administrators to evaluate whether to implement recommended evidence-based interventions in their practices.

METHODS

We used dissemination and implementation theory to develop a worksheet to guide decision making about whether interventions are suitable for implementation in primary care practice settings. We tested the tool by analyzing how members of a primary care practice-based research network rated 4 evidence-based interventions.

RESULTS

The median likelihood of implementation ranged from 2 to 3.5 on a scale of 1 (low) to 5 (high). Raters' level of agreement with statements about 3 intervention characteristics was associated (P < .05) with a higher likelihood of implementation using Spearman rank-order correlation: simple to implement, testable before fully implementing, and modifiable to meet the needs of the practice. Raters found the worksheet helpful in thinking through potential implementation, especially the prompts about modifiability and relevance to the practice's patients and priorities.

CONCLUSIONS

The Decision-to-Implement Worksheet provides a new resource for primary care practices that want to assess whether evidence-based interventions are suitable to adopt or adapt to meet their needs.

Using Community Partnerships to Better Understand the Barriers to Using an Evidence-Based, Parent-Mediated Intervention for Autism Spectrum Disorder in a Medicaid System

Service use disparities have been noted to impede under-resourced families' ability to access high-quality services for their child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). These disparities are particularly relevant for parent-mediated interventions and may suggest a lack of fit between these interventions and the needs of under-resourced community settings. This study used Roger's Diffusion of Innovations theory to guide community partnerships aimed at understanding the perceived compatibility, complexity, and relative advantage of using an evidence-based, parent-mediated intervention (Project ImPACT) within a Medicaid system. Three focus groups were conducted with 16 Medicaid-eligible parents, and three focus groups were conducted with 16 ASD providers operating within a Medicaid system. Across all groups, parents and providers reported general interest in using Project ImPACT. However, primary themes emerged regarding the need to (a) reduce the complexity of written materials; (b) allow for a more flexible program delivery; (c) ensure a strong parent-therapist alliance; (d) involve the extended family; and (e) help families practice the intervention within their preexisting routines. Results are discussed as they relate to the design and fit of evidence-based, parent-mediated interventions for under-resourced community settings.

Longitudinal Examination of Medical Staff Utilization in Substance Use Disorder Treatment Organizations

This study examined changes in utilization of medical staff within organizations specializing in treatment of patients with substance use disorder (SUD) at two points in time (2007 and 2010). Utilization was calculated as the number of hours paid weekly for psychiatrists, physicians, nurses, and other medical staff working as employees or on contract. Study data come from a longitudinal national sample of 274 substance use disorder treatment centers. Average utilization of medical staff by these SUD treatment organizations increased by 26% from 2007 to 2010. The results showed that growing SUD treatment centers that obtained more referrals from health care providers, used case managers to coordinate comprehensive approaches to patient care, provided medication assisted treatment (MAT), and that were connected more closely with hospitals made increased use of medical staff over the 2007-2010 period. In 2010, these organizations seem to have been moving in directions consistent with trends forecasted for the SUD treatment environment after implementation of the Affordable Care Act.