Feasibility of a Supportive Other Intervention for Opiate-Dependent Patients Entering Inpatient Detoxification

Abstract

Involvement of supportive others (SOs; defined as patient’s most important person) in substance treatment is widely accepted as a valuable addition to substance use treatment, but is not routinely implemented during inpatient detoxification for opioid use disorders. The current study explores the feasibility of a brief SO intervention for individuals detoxing from opioids. Data regarding ability to identify an SO, the nature of the SO relationship, and willingness to invite an SO to help with long-term abstinence were collected from 369 patients attending inpatient opioid detoxification. For those unwilling to participate in an SO intervention, possible barriers to participation were examined. Results indicated the majority (71.8%) of patients were willing to involve SOs, and that they believed that their SO was supportive of their treatment (88.1%). Those unwilling to invite an SO reported that their identified SO was a young child or that they wanted to make life changes independently. We conclude that SO involvement in substance use treatment at the time of opioid detoxification is feasible and could be engaged in future interventions.

A randomized pilot trial of brief family-involved treatment for alcohol use disorder: Treatment engagement and outcomes.

“…Combined with the feedback from clinicians who implemented B-FIT, and the results of previous research (e.g., O'Farrell et al, 2008;Schonbrun et al, 2016) the results of the present study suggest a strong interest among clinicians, family members, and patients in involving families in brief AUD or SUD treatment, but the "formula" to do so still needs refinement and development. Several future refinements might enhance the generalizability of these interventions.…”

“…Previous research on family engagement in inpatient settings has suggested that patients undergoing detoxification for opioid dependence (Schonbrun et al, 2016) and families of patients in AUD treatment (McCrady, Wilson et al, 2019) express enthusiasm for family involvement. However, one previous pilot study to engage families of patients undergoing detoxification from alcohol (O’Farrell et al, 2008) faced similar challenges in engaging families in the intervention—among 897 patients admitted to the detoxification program during the study, less than 25% (201) lived with a family member.…”