Opioid overdose is the leading cause of accidental death in the United States, surpassing car accidents and firearm deaths over the past few years. Opioid overdoses have been responsible for life expectancy declining for the past three years, a trend not seen since 1918. We are working on innovative treatments for opioid use disorder and the prevention of overdose.
Ongoing Studies
IDENTIFYING OPPORTUNITIES FOR PREVENTION OF OPIOID OVERDOSE DEATHS
(PI: Dr. Karen Cropsey)
An archival study aiming to describe patterns of healthcare utilization and patient and provider behavior the year prior to death by opioid overdose by linking medical record data to opioid overdose death data in Jefferson County, AL. A secondary aim is to identify environmental “hotspots” through geospatial analysis to identify areas for which dissemination of opioid prevention resources are necessary.
PROJECT LEAP (LINKAGE, EDUCATION, AND PREVENTION)
(PI: Dr. Ellen Eaton; Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)
The LEAP study is a 5-year proposal aimed at increasing access to HIV and substance use education and prevention with an emphasis on African American youth and young adults. This study will rely on a Prevention Navigator to link eligible youth and young adults to substance use treatment and HIV prevention services both in the community and at UAB-affiliated clinical sites.
HIV+ SERVICE DELIVERY AND TELEMEDICINE THROUGH EFFECTIVE PROS (+STEP)
(PI: Dr. Ellen Eaton; NIH R01 MH124633-01)
The +STEP is an implementation science project that will integrate substance use and mental health services for persons living with HIV in Alabama. Using a stepped wedge approach, patients at 6 Ryan White funded HIV clinics will receive patient-reported outcome assessments to improve the diagnosis of mental health and substance use disorders. In addition to this enhanced screening, patients will receive integrated treatment including telemedicine.
Link to Abstract in NIH ReporterLearn more about Ellen Eaton
THE CONTINUUM OF CARE IN HOSPITALIZED PATIENTS WITH OPIOID USE DISORDER (OUD) AND INFECTIOUS COMPLICATIONS OF DRUG USE (CHOICE) STUDY
(PI: Dr. Ellen Eaton; P30 AI027767)
The CHOICE study is a multi-center, collaborative project that will assess the OUD, HIV, and HCV outcomes among hospitalized PWID with OUD and available interventions and resources for patients who are hospitalized with infectious complications of injection drug use. This study is an NIH-sponsored collaboration with the University of Maryland, Emory, George Washington University, and UAB.
DETECT-HIV – Discovering Emerging Trends through Enhanced Community Testing for HIV Infection
(PI: Dr. Sonya Heath; Sponsor: Alabama Department of Public Health)
DETECT-HIV is a 4 year CDC/ADPH funded project, aimed at determining seroprevalence of HIV among rural and high impact populations of people living with injection drug use (PWID) due to a lack of engagement and HIV testing in these communities. We support linkage to care for HIV and Hepatitis-C (HCV) seropositive individuals and those we identify with opioid use disorder (OUD). We partner with a range of community-based organizations that provide harm reduction services including ADPH, health departments, medication-assisted treatment (MAT) sites, HIV and HCV treatment and prevention partners (including AIDS service organizations and Federally Qualified Health Centers), emergency departments, justice programs, mental health facilities, and others.
Clinical contexts of Suicide following OPIOID transitionS (CSI: OPIOIDS)
(PI: Stefan Kertesz; Funding: UAB Dept of Medicine (pilot))
A large-scale reduction in opioid prescribing has included a national focus on dose reduction and stoppage for roughly 10 million persons who receive these medicines long-term. Preliminary data and federal reports suggest that outcomes from stoppage sometimes include suicide. The goal of the project is to understand these suicides in the context of prescription opioid stoppage, using case-control and psychological autopsy methods, in order to develop, test, and evaluate strategies to mitigate suicide risk in this population.
Strategic Plans to Combat Opioid Use Disorder in the State of Alabama
(PI: Dr. Li Li; FORE)
The objectives of the proposed project are to:
- develop a series of educational modules on Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) treatment;
- expand access to OUD treatment through collaboration using telemedicine which will lay the groundwork for a sustainable OUD telemedicine clinic.
Urgency to implement DATA waiver training at University of Alabama at Birmingham
(PI: Dr. Li Li; SAMHSA)
The objectives of the proposed project are to:
- Increase the capacity of UAB’s Internal Medicine and Psychiatry residency programs to provide addiction-oriented training by developing sustainable learning activities to be incorporated as a standard part of the curriculum during their residency training;
- Increase the number of learners completing DATA waiver training by decreasing barriers to access to training;
- Increase access to MAT services in Alabama by increasing the number of Internal Medicine and Psychiatry faculty and residents who become MAT service providers.
INCREASING NALOXONE ACCESS FOR PERSONS WHO USE OPIOIDS: AN ONLINE RECRUITMENT AND TRAINING APPROACH TO OPIOID OVERDOSE EDUCATION AND NALOXONE DISTRIBUTION
(PI: Michelle Sisson, F31DA052158; graduate student in Dr. Karen Cropsey's Lab)
This project will recruit persons who use opioids remotely through CraigsList and other online modalities, provide training and randomize participants to receive a naloxone kit via mail or refer them to a local pharmacy to obtain a naloxone clinic. Primary outcomes include the feasibility and acceptability of this remote methodology. Secondary outcomes will examine continued opioid use and engagement in drug treatment services.
Learn more about Michelle SissonLearn more about Karen Cropsey
OPIOID USE DISORDER HEALTH INFORMATION EXCHANGE
(PI: Dr. Lauren Walters; Sponsor: Alabama Department of Public Health)
This proposal will increase the diagnosis and treatment of opioid use disorder by implementing natural language processing to identify OUD within the UAB health system.