Supporting direct acting antiviral medication adherence and treatment completion in a sample of predominantly rural veterans with hepatitis C and substance use disorders.

Background: Clinic-based interventions are needed to promote successful direct acting antiviral (DAA) treatment for chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in patients with substance use disorders (SUDs) among rural Veterans.

Methods: We implemented a clinic-based intervention which used motivational interviewing (MI) techniques to promote medication adherence and treatment completion with 12 weeks of DAA treatment among rural Veterans with chronic HCV and SUDs. Patients received an MI session with a licensed psychologist at baseline and at each two-week follow-up visit during DAA treatment. Patients received $25 per study visit completed. Patients were to attend a laboratory visit 12 weeks after treatment completion to assess for sustained virologic response (SVR).

Results: Of the 20 participants who enrolled, 75% (n = 15) completed the planned 12-week course of treatment. Average adherence by pill count was 92% (SD = 3%). Overall SVR was 95% (19/20).

Conclusions: We demonstrated that a clinic-based intervention which incorporated frequent follow up visits and MI techniques was feasible and acceptable to a sample of predominantly rural Veterans with chronic HCV and SUDs.

Clinical Trial Registration: Registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT02823457) on July 1, 2016. https://clinicaltrials.gov .