Social Work Assistance and Stipends for Housing (SASH)
Condition: Opioid-Related Disorders; Housing Problems
MeSH terms: Opioid-Related Disorders
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      SASH is a clinical trial feasibility study that will provide an intervention to improve
      Opioid Use Disorder (OUD), Quality of Life (QOL), and housing outcomes for homeless patients
      receiving Medication for Opiate Use Disorder (MOUD). The main questions of the study are does
      a $500 housing stipend for individuals on MOUD increase treatment retention, improved quality
      of life and prevent homelessness.
    

Detailed description: 
      SASH is a clinical trial feasibility study that will provide an housing stipend for 8
      individuals (N=8) experience homelessness and currently being treated for OUD to improve OUD
      treatment outcomes, QOL, and housing outcomes. To achieve these goals, patients will receive
      monthly $500 housing stipends that can be used for a broad range of temporary housing
      included in a list of resources compiled by the study. These stipends will be accompanied by
      Social Work assistance to find permanent housing which will last the full 12 months of the
      study. SASH will recruit OUD patients receiving MOUD who are struggling with homelessness,
      defined as living in an emergency shelter or a place not meant for habitation instead of a
      fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence. This definition is consistent with the one
      used by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The patients will be recruited
      from the University of Maryland Addiction Treatment Program (ATP), a certified Substance Use
      Disorder (SUD) treatment program that provides MOUD and collocates medical care, wellness
      programs, and research. Patients will be eligible for SASH if they experienced homelessness
      during at least 15 of the 30 days preceding the dispensing of the first month's stipends.SASH
      will accomplish its goals using the following aims and objectives:

      AIM 1: Improve OUD outcomes

        -  Hypothesis 1a: Patients will miss fewer methadone doses and receive more take-home
           methadone doses after receiving the stipends and Social Work assistance Endpoint:
           Percentages of missed and take-home methadone doses, as recorded by the software
           tracking methadone-dispensing at the ATP, in the 3-month period before the study,
           between Month 3 and 6 of the study, and between Month 9 and 12 of the study

        -  Hypothesis 1b: Patients will experience an improvement in their OUD after receiving the
           stipends and Social Work assistance Endpoint: OUD Checklist scores completed at Day 0,
           Month 6, and Month 12 of the study

        -  Hypothesis 1c: Patients will use fewer opioids and illicit substances after receiving
           the stipends and Social Work assistance Endpoint: Monthly urine toxicology tests (UTT)
           three months before study entry and monthly during the study

      AIM 2: Improve QOL

        -  Hypothesis 2a: Patients will experience improvement in QOL during the study Endpoint:
           SF-36 scores at Day 0, Month 6, and Month 12 of the study

        -  Hypothesis 2b: Patients will report benefit from receiving the stipends and Social Work
           assistance

      AIM 3: Prevent homelessness

        -  Hypothesis 3a: The monthly $500 stipends will prevent patients from being homeless
           Endpoint: Percentage of days patients are homeless during the 6-month period stipends
           are distributed

        -  Hypothesis 3b: Patients will be in housing by the end of the study Endpoint: Percentage
           of patients who are homeless or in either permanent or temporary housing by Month 12 of
           the study
    

Intervention name(s): Stipend and Social Work Supports
Intervention type(s): Behavioral
Intervention description(s): Same as arm description
Intervention model: Single Group Assignment
Intervention model description: 8 individuals will be recruited and followed for 12 months following the intervention. The intervention includes providing a $500 monthly housing stipend for six months and twelve months of social work support to find permanent housing. Individuals will be asked to provide information thought interviews and clinical records.
Masking: None (Open Label)
Primary purpose: Treatment