title: Psychiatric distress, risk behavior, and treatment enrollment among syringe exchange participants.
abstract: The present study evaluated psychiatric distress as a predictor of treatment enrollment in out-of-treatment injection opioid users newly registered at the Baltimore Needle Exchange Program (BNEP). Study participants (n=281) completed the Addiction Severity Index (ASI), the Risk Assessment Battery (RAB), and the Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90-R), and were randomly assigned to one of three different conditions for 4 months that evaluated referral strategies designed to promote treatment interest and enrollment. The Global Severity Index (GSI) of the SCL-90 was used as a measure of psychiatric distress. A logistic regression showed that higher GSI scores predicted more treatment enrollment (Adjusted OR=2.15, CI=1.10-4.23, p<0.05), after controlling for study condition, demographic variables, syringe exchange site, and severity of drug use. The results suggest that the data from the assessment of psychiatric distress in syringe exchange settings can be used to support motivational strategies for encouraging syringe exchangers to seek substance abuse treatment.
authors.affiliation: Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Addiction Treatment Services-BBRC, Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, 5510 Nathan Shock Drive, Baltimore, MD 21224, USA.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kidorf
authors.forename: Van L
authors.initials: VL
authors.lastname: King
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Peirce
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Burke
authors.forename: Ken
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kolodner
authors.forename: Robert K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Brooner
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015142:Baltimore / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D008875:Middle Aged; D016485:Needle Sharing / Q000523:psychology; D018671:Needle-Exchange Programs; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012309:Risk-Taking; D015819:Substance Abuse, Intravenous / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult