Addiction Housing Case Management for Homeless Veterans Enrolled in Addictions Treatment

Background: Homelessness, substance use, and co-occurring psychiatric disorders form a mutually perpetuating, downwardly spiraling triad that maintains a state of homelessness, increases morbidity and mortality and thereby escalates health care utilization and costs. Addiction treatment is one portal of health care entry accessed by many Veterans with this devastating triad, yet addiction treatment fails to address homelessness directly. Homeless Veterans entering addiction treatment have worse treatment outcomes and incur more costs than housed Veterans entering such treatment. Further, many homeless Veterans never obtain housing after treatment entry and substantial proportion of those who do may subsequently return to homelessness. Assertive community treatment / intensive case management shows promise in improving housing status, as well as substance use and mental health outcomes in this population. Life Skills Training, which has been shown to improve the likelihood of maintaining housing, may increase the effectiveness of this method of treatment. An approach to homelessness incorporating assertive community treatment / intensive case management and Life Skills Training has never previously been integrated into VA addiction specialty care.

Objectives: The proposed study will examine intensive case management for homeless Veterans in addiction treatment by integrating addiction/housing case managers (AHCM), operating from a Life Skills Training perspective, into an addiction specialty program. The primary aim is to determine whether the AHCM intervention increases number of days housed during the year following treatment entry. Secondary aims are to compare costs and cost-effectiveness of AHCM vs. time and attention control, determine if AHCM improves addiction outcomes and functional status, and examine treatment process variables associated with improved outcomes.

Methods: The proposed study is a, parallel design, intention to treat, randomized clinical trial comparing the AHCM intervention to a time and attention control (weekly housing group) among homeless Veterans (N=400) newly entering addiction treatment. Following baseline assessment, Veterans will be randomly assigned, stratified by gender and primary substance problem, to one of the two treatment conditions and followed for 12 months. All Veterans will receive addiction treatment as usual. Veterans assigned to the AHCM condition will have a case manager who is integrated with the interdisciplinary treatment team. The AHCM will meet with the Veteran weekly, assist the Veteran with potential housing options, support the Veteran in continuing addiction treatment and psychiatric care, visit the Veteran in the community when appropriate, and obtain point of care urine toxicology testing to assess abstinence with the goal of addressing substance use issues proactively. The AHCM will educate the Veteran on needed basic life skills using existing manuals. Veterans assigned to the control condition will attend a weekly housing group where housing options are discussed. Participants will complete research assessments every 3 months through one year and then every 6 months for up to 2 years post-randomization to assess housing status and other outcomes. The Northwest Regional Data Warehouse and Decision Support System data sources will be used to determine outpatient and inpatient VA health care services and costs for the 1 year before and 2 years after study enrollment.

Impact: If the AHCM model interrupts the mutually perpetuating triad of homelessness, substance use, and co-occurring psychiatric disorders by increasing days stably housed, reducing costs and excessive health care utilization, and improving functional status, the model could be feasibly and rapidly replicated in VA addiction programs nationwide thereby decreasing homelessness among Veterans and preserving precious health care resources.