title: A Pilot Test of a Mobile App for Drug Court Participants.
abstract: The U.S. criminal justice system refers more people to substance abuse treatment than any other system. Low treatment completion rates and high relapse rates among addicted offenders highlight the need for better substance use disorder treatment and recovery tools. Mobile health applications (apps) may fill that need by providing continuous support. In this pilot test, 30 participants in a Massachusetts drug court program used A-CHESS, a mobile app for recovery support and relapse prevention, over a four-month period. Over the course of the study period, participants opened A-CHESS on average of 62% of the days that they had the app. Social networking tools were the most utilized services. The study results suggest that drug court participants will make regular use of a recovery support app. This pilot study sought to find out if addicted offenders in a drug court program would use a mobile application to support and manage their recovery.
authors.affiliation: Center for Health Enhancement Systems Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA.
authors.forename: Kimberly
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.affiliation: Communications Coordinator, Population Health Institute, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA.
authors.forename: Stephanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Richards
authors.affiliation: Research Assistant, Center for Health Enhancement Systems Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA.; Assistant Professor, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, USA.
authors.forename: Ming-Yuan
authors.initials: MY
authors.lastname: Chih
authors.affiliation: Honorary Fellow, Center for Health Enhancement Systems Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA.
authors.forename: Tae Joon
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Moon
authors.affiliation: Advocates, Inc., Ayer Concord Drug Court, Ayer, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Hilary
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Curtis
authors.affiliation: Center for Health Enhancement Systems Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA.
authors.forename: David H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Gustafson
keywords: drug court; mobile health; social networks; substance abuse; substance use disorder