Implementing Contingency Management for Stimulant Use in Specialty Addiction Treatment Organizations

Stimulants constitute a new and deadly fourth wave of the opioid epidemic. Contingency management is the most effective intervention for stimulant use and is an evidence-based adjunct to medication for opioid use disorder. Yet, uptake of contingency management in opioid treatment programs that provide medication for opioid use disorder remains low; in fact, access to contingency management is arguably one of the greatest research-to-practice gaps in the addiction treatment services field. The goal of this study is to conduct a type III hybrid effectiveness-implementation trial to evaluate a multi-level implementation strategy, the Science of Service Laboratory, to install contingency management for stimulant use in opioid treatment programs. The Science of Service Laboratory has three core components: didactic training, performance feedback, and external facilitation. Utilizing a stepped wedge design, a cohort of public sector addiction specialty treatment programs will be randomized to receive Science of Service Laboratory across four cohorts. Each of the programs will provide de-identified electronic medical record data from all available patient charts on contingency management delivery and patient outcomes. Staff from each program will provide feedback on contextual determinants influencing implementation. This study will rigorously evaluate whether a multi-level implementation strategy developed by one of the longest-standing national intermediary purveyor organizations-the SAMHSA Technology Transfer Centers, will improve both implementation and patient outcomes.