Preventing Premature Death Among Hospital Patients With Serious Opioid-Related Infection (SORI): A Phase 1 Pilot Study

We will recruit 30 SORI inpatients ages 18-plus admitted to the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC). We will administer a battery of validated assessments of substance use, overdose history and risk, opioid-related infection, and suicidal behavior at baseline and approximately 2- and 4-week follow-ups. We will assess both forms of overdose (unintentional, intentional - i.e., suicidal behavior) because each is common in intravenous drug users and they require systematic assessment to disentangle. All recruited individuals will receive one-to-three MI sessions as they begin the MAT that is part of standard hospital care. Patients will be offered computer-based CBT, which they will complete on the unit at their convenience. The CBT program records duration of use of the treatment modules, enabling us to track patients' level of CBT treatment participation. Patient-completed intervention feedback forms and treatment completion will be examined after 15 subjects have participated. Based on this feedback, we will pilot an adapted (MI plus CBT) treatment manual, obtaining additional feedback on acceptability. We will assess psychopathy, a constellation of stable traits and potentially important moderator of treatment effects, at baseline. We will assess potential mediators (i.e., motivation to change, self-regulation) using validated measures at baseline and at approximately 2- and 4-weeks post-discharge.