Usability and feasibility of a take-home methadone web-application for opioid treatment program patients: A Small Business Innovation Research mixed methods study
Year: 2023
Type: article
Abstract: BACKGROUND: Most patients in opioid treatment programs (OTPs) attend daily for observed dosing. A Stage IA (create and adapt) and a Stage IB (feasibility and pilot) mixed method studies tested a web-application (app) designed to facilitate access to take-home methadone. METHODS: A Stage IA, intervention development study, used qualitative interviews to assess the usability (ease of use) and feasibility (ability to implement) of a take-home methadone app. The Stage IA market research was a two-week test with 96 patient participants from four OTPs. Qualitative interviews were completed with 20 systematically selected individuals who used the take-home app and 20 OTP clinicians (five each from the four OTPs). The Stage IB Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) study (24 patients and 8 clinicians in a single OTP) included quantitative assessments of the app's usability, acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility. Thematic analysis coded participant and staff assessments of the take-home app. RESULTS: Stage IA patients (mean age = 41 years; 52 % men, 57 % White) and IB patients (mean age = 38 years, 54 % men, 79 % White) described the app as "easy to use." Compared to unsupervised take-homes, some patients preferred using the take-home app. In Stage IB, patients rated the app highly on standardized measures of usability, acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility. Clinician ratings were more ambivalent. Patients rated in-clinic dosing as more disruptive than unsupervised take-homes and take-homes using the app. DISCUSSION: A Stage IA study informed the development and maturation of a Stage IB feasibility pilot study. Overall, the take-home app's usability, acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility were rated positively. Clinical staff ratings were less positive, but individuals commented that using the app a) enhanced patient quality of life, b) provided new tools for counselors, and c) offered competitive advantages. The SBIR award enhanced market research with more complete and systematic data collection and analysis.
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,340
Awards: G1237377007, Evaluating the Usability, Efficacy and Commercial Utility of a Digital Platform to Deliver Comprehensive Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder, Western States Node of the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network, G3277885570, REMOTE: tREatMent for Opioid use via TElemedicine, Oregon HIV/Hepatitis and Opioid Prevention and Engagement (OR-HOPE) Study, G3954192850, Peer-based Retention of people who Use Drugs in Rural Research (PROUD-R2), G5210771301, G5219567028, EpiCenter - EPIdemiology of opioid prescribing in community health CENTERs, G7262222642, PAST-DUE (Prevention and Social Determinants: Disparities and Utilization in Latino Elders), G9000138712, G9000320948, G9000337255, Center for Dissemination and Implementation At Stanford (C-DIAS), Stagewise Implementation-To-Target- Medications for Addiction Treatment (SITT-MAT), Western States Node of the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network
OpenAlex ID: W4387745796