Understanding change in long-term Opioid Substitute Therapy clients
Research type
Research Study
Full title
An exploration of the everyday lives of long-term Opioid Substitution Therapy recipients, and identified barriers to change.
IRAS ID
192327
Contact name
Charlie Lloyd
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of York
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
15/IEC08/0068, IRAS reference number
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 11 months, 30 days
Research summary
This research project will map the operational models of ‘recovery-focused’ drug services in York, and explore the role they play in the lives of people who have been prescribed methadone or Subutex for multiple years. Despite the lack of a firm, agreed definition of ‘recovery,’ the concept has come to shape drug services’ work in recent years. It is generally taken to mean progress towards abstinence from both drug use and opioid medication, supported by increasing social reintegration. Debate continues over the role of prescribing services within this ‘recovery agenda’.
Service-level processes will be explored by interviews with key professionals in local drug services, mapping their engagement of heroin users, rates of medication-abstinence, treatment ethos, and mechanisms used for supporting detoxification and abstinence.
Client-level processes will be explored by recruiting a sample of thirty service users who have been prescribed methadone or Subutex for at least five years. A preferred, purposive sample will be identified from anonymised records of all drug service clients, held centrally by York’s commissioners. Depending on the data available, potential participants with varying levels of access to recovery resources (such as secure housing, stable employment, and long periods of uninterrupted prescribing) will be identified. Their identifiers will then be sent to drug services, where potential participants will be approached by their case managers to seek their consent for an approach by the research team.
Those who consent to participate in the research will complete two semi-structured interviews, six months apart. Interviews will seek to develop a rich understanding of the recovery capital and ‘everyday lives’ of long-term OST recipients, whilst exploring their engagement with recovery goals, recovery services, and ‘non-professional’ sources of support; and their relationship with abstinence from illicit drugs and opioid medication.
REC name
Social Care REC
REC reference
15/IEC08/0068
Date of REC Opinion
20 Jan 2016
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion