Recent Incarceration and Minoritized Racial Status as Barriers to the Effectiveness of Recovery Management Checkups.

BACKGROUND

Recovery management checkups done in primary care settings (RMC-PCs) can be an effective intervention to link individuals with substance use disorders (SUD) to treatment and help them stay engaged with treatment. There is reason to question, however, whether RMC-PCs are as effective for those who have been recently incarcerated or for those holding a minoritized, racial identity.

METHODS

We examined data from a randomized controlled trial of RMC-PCs compared to a control condition (N = 266).

RESULTS

Multilevel analyses of 4-wave data (3, 6, 9, and 12 months after baseline) indicated that RMC-PCs were more effective than the control condition, especially early in the 12-month study period. The relative effectiveness of RMC-PCs was stronger, however, for participants with fewer days in jail just prior to baseline as well as for White (versus non-White) participants.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings suggest the utility of examining potential mediators of these moderated effects in future research as well as tailoring SUD interventions to better meet the needs of these populations.