SMART Trial for Buprenorphine-Naloxone Medication Assisted Treatment Adherence

Testing the Effects of Contingency Management and Behavioral Economics on Buprenorphine-Naloxone Treatment Adherence Using a Sequential Multiple Assignment Randomized Trial (SMART) Design

University of Memphis, University of New Mexico, University of Tennessee, National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)

The purpose of this study is to compare the effectiveness of two different interventions for medication-assisted treatment (MAT) adherence: Contingency Management (CM) and Brief Motivational Interviewing + Substance Free Activities + Mindfulness (BSM).

The investigators seek to compare the effectiveness of these two different interventions for MAT adherence by first refining and piloting CM and BSM adherence approaches, then conducting a Sequential Multiple Assignment Randomized Trial (SMART) to assess sequential, individual, and combined effects across MAT initiation and maintenance. In order to tailor treatment to individual's needs, the study will follow a sequential multiple assignment randomized trial (SMART) design: In stage 1, participants are individually randomized (1:1) to BSM or CM. Adherent buprenorphine-naloxone participants complete treatment in the arm they were originally assigned to, but non-adherent participants are re-randomized (1:1) to either switch to the other intervention or add the other intervention in this part-factorial SMART.

In stage 1, participants are individually randomized (1:1) to BSM or CM. At the end of stage 1, adherent buprenorphine-naloxone participants remain in their respective intervention group during phase 2 (maintenance phase of same approach), whereas non-adherent participants are randomized (individually and 1:1) to either switch or add the respective other intervention in this part-factorial SMART. Our primary outcome is buprenorphine-naloxone adherence by the end of stage 2. This sequential randomization based on past treatment success assures that the assigned treatment option at any point in time is independent of future potential outcomes and only conditional on the subject's history, i.e., the sequential ignorable treatment assumption is satisfied by design,108 in sharp distinction to observational data where patients chose to switch/add or not to switch/add and where this assumption remains untestable.

CM is a behavioral method that employs external rewards for target behavior. Participants will receive gift cards for adhering to treatment (attending physician visits and being adherent to buprenorphine-naloxone) for their first 4 clinic visits.

BSM+CM is a combination of the two other arms. Participants may be randomized to this arm only in stage 2 of the SMART design.

Contingency management (CM) is a behavioral method that employs external rewards for target behavior. For this study, participants will receive gift cards for adhering to Medication-Assisted Treatment (attending physician visits and adhering to buprenorphine-naloxone as determined by urine toxicology panel) during their first four visits while randomized to this condition. Participants will draw a gift card from a fishbowl each visit they are adherent. Gift cards range from $25-$100.

Brief Motivational Interviewing + Substance Free Activities + Mindfulness (BSM) is an intervention that uses Motivational Interviewing and Behavioral Economics strategies to increase the salience of delayed rewards by eliciting personal goals, developing opioid-free activities, and engaging in reward bundling and episodic future thinking. Participants will be offered a menu of substance free activities that has been developed in pilot work. Activities will be discussed, and participants will be asked to engage in selected activities as homework. Engagement in substance free activities will be assessed at each subsequent visit. Mindfulness components will also be included in the intervention.

Number of visits where participant attends physician appointment and drug screen results are buprenorphine-positive.

Inclusion Criteria: Present with symptoms of Opioid Use Disorder Eligible of receipt of buprenorphine-naloxone medication as determined by Study Doctor Access to a telephone Exclusion Criteria: Under 18 years old Unable to understand spoken English

It is anticipated that a cleaned data set of study-specific data will be provided within two years following the completion of the study for the data archive and this data set would be made public. Confidentiality of individual participants would be maintained with all releases of data. The final study analytical database would be processed according to HIPAA definitions for public data sharing. Documentation would be provided along with the data sharing file that includes but is not limited to: data dictionary, data codebook, valid variable ranges (where provided), the protocol, procedure and operational manuals, intervention manual or programs and any electronic versions of any paper forms that were used in data collection.