Implementing Substance Abuse Intervention Services in New York City Sexually Transmitted Disease Clinics: Factors Promoting Interagency Collaboration.

This report presents results of Project LINK, a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)-funded, 5-year collaboration (2007-2012) between New York City (NYC) health and NY State substance abuse disorder (SUD) agencies, an LGBT organization contractor, and multiple SUD, social service, and mental health referral agencies. LINK allowed the first ever SUD screening, brief intervention, and referrals to treatment (SBIRT) intervention services onsite in NYC Bureau of Sexually Transmitted Disease Control (BSTDC) clinics. Factors favoring collaboration were (a) joint recognition of substance abuse as an STD risk factor; (b) prior collaborations; (c) agreement on priority of BSTDC's mission and policies; (d) extensive SBIRT training, cross training on STDs; (e) a memorandum of agreement; and (f) mutual transparency of collaborative efforts, among others.

Housing First for severely mentally ill homeless methadone patients.

The Housing First approach used by Pathways to Housing, Inc., was used to enhance residential independence and treatment retention of homeless, seriously mentally ill methadone patients. The Keeping Home project first secured scattered-site apartments and assertive community treatment services and then addressed patients' service needs.

A preliminary comparison of major kinds of obstacles to enrolling in substance abuse treatment (AOD) reported by injecting street outreach clients and other stakeholders.

Injecting drug users (IDU) (n=144), street outreach (n=55), and treatment program (n=71) staff and managers in stakeholder government agencies (n=11) cited or mentioned many barriers to enrolling in substance abuse treatment (AOD), using varied assessment instruments (1). Here, we aimed to investigate a possible overemphasis on individual client factors (e.g.

Substance abuse intervention services in public STD clinics: a pilot experience.

Past research reported a gap in substance abuse treatment for patients in sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinics. Studies in New York City indicate that approximately 20% of patients with STD show symptoms of alcohol and substance abuse, but only 1% have ever received treatment services. This article reports findings from a pilot project that implemented early intervention service procedures in an STD clinic in New York City.

Assessing alcohol and other drug problems (AOD) among sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinic patients with a modified CAGE-A: implications for AOD intervention services and STD prevention.

The close link between alcohol and other drug abuse and STD morbidity and the positive impact of AOD intervention services in reducing STD morbidity, led the New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) and the New York City Bureau of STD Control (BSTDC) to assess the prevalence of AOD problems among STD clinic patients. Assessing problematic AOD involvement among STD patients was of interest to BSTDC for STD prevention and to OASAS, for new AOD case-finding and early intervention. During fall, 2000, 100 STD patients in each of the 7 full-time BSTDC clinics in New York City were solicited in clinic waiting rooms; eligible patients were screened individually and anonymously with a modified CAGE-A (mCA).

Barriers to enrollment in drug abuse treatment and suggestions for reducing them: opinions of drug injecting street outreach clients and other system stakeholders.

Alcohol and other drug abuse (AOD) treatment is a major means of HIV/AIDS prevention, yet clients of street outreach programs (SOP) who are injection drug users (IDU), and outreach workers and staff as well, report various obstacles to enrolling clients in AOD programs. This study assessed the barriers to AOD enrollment facing high risk street outreach clients and obtained suggestions for reducing them. Data were obtained from semistructured field interviews with: 1) IDU outreach clients (N = 144) of the six SOPs in New York City (NYC) and northern suburbs supported by the Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS), the single state agency in New York State for AOD prevention and treatment, 2) outreach workers and staff of the six SOPs (N = 55), 3) staff of detox and AOD treatment programs in major modalities treating IDUs (N = 71), and 4) officials and administrators (N = 11) in OASAS, the AIDS Institute of the Department of Health (addresses all aspects of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in New York State), and the agency for public assistance in New York City, the Human Resources Administration (HRA).