Assessing Feasibility and Barriers to Implementing a Family-Based Intervention in Opioid Treatment Programs.

Area of Science:

• Addiction Medicine
• Family Therapy
• Implementation Science

Background:

• Families Facing the Future (FFF) is a unique intervention for parents in methadone treatment, integrating child prevention and parental recovery.
• FFF aims to prevent relapse, manage relapse, and improve parenting skills to reduce child substance use.
• Despite its potential, FFF adoption has been limited by implementation barriers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the perceived feasibility of implementing the FFF intervention.
• To identify and describe specific barriers encountered during FFF implementation.

Main Methods:

• An online survey assessed implementation feasibility among patients and providers.
• Qualitative interviews explored barriers in depth.
• Data were collected from 40 participants (20 patients, 20 providers) at two Florida Opioid Treatment Programs.

Main Results:

• Both patients and providers reported high feasibility scores for the FFF intervention.
• Key barriers included difficulties attending parent training, reluctance towards in-home visits, and funding issues (patient incentives, insurance billing).

Conclusions:

• The FFF intervention is perceived as highly feasible by patients and providers in opioid treatment settings.
• Significant barriers related to session accessibility, home visit acceptance, and financial constraints hinder widespread adoption.
• This study highlights the need for modifications to facilitate the integration of FFF into real-world clinical practice.