Psychosocial and substance use severity in unemployed patients enrolled in methadone maintenance and psychosocial abstinence-based programs.

Employment is a potent predictor of positive treatment outcome. Efforts to improve rates of employment in persons with substance use disorders (SUDs) have generally been disappointing. This study examined psychosocial and medical co-morbidities in unemployed patients, separately in methadone maintenance and psychosocial abstinence-focused programs participating in protocol CTN-0020, “Job Seekers Training for Patients with Drug Dependence.” Results found that methadone maintenance patients (MM) were more likely to be older, female, unemployed, or disabled, and less likely to be Caucasian, than drug-free patients (DF). MM patients also spent significantly less time enrolled in psychiatric treatment than DF participants, but were more likely to experience chronic medical problems. Future research will examine how psychosocial characteristics related to employment outcomes with Job Seekers Workshop intervention and control group conditions.

Study findings have implications for future drug abuse treatment programming and linkages with programs that provide job training and employment support.

Related protocols: CTN-0020