Sunday, 16 January 2005 - 8:45 AM

This presentation is part of: Substance Abuse in Women

Factors associated with drug treatment entry patterns among Hispanic women heroin users seeking treatment

Purpose: A "health services utilization" conceptual model developed by Andersen (1995) and Aday and Awe (1997), provides the framework for a study examining patterns of drug treatment use among 1,849 adult Hispanic women injection drug users (IDUs) who are heroin users. Rates of heroin use have risen dramatically in Massachusetts. This increase is closely associated with the increase of HIV cases in the state. Also, the rise in heroin use in the U.S. has been especially pronounced among young Hispanic adults (Frank, 2000) resulting in injection drug use accounting for 38 percent of diagnosed AIDS cases among Hispanic women (CDC, 2002).

Methods: The data analyzed originates from a Massachusetts' statewide drug-treatment database covering seven years, 1996-2002. Through the use of logistic regression analyses, the study identified significant differences in predisposing, need and enabling factors in the use of detoxification only, residential treatment or methadone maintenance.

Results: Puerto Rican women compared to other groups of Hispanic women were approximately 40 percent less likely to only use detoxification services and one and a half times more likely to use methadone maintenance. Two of the most important factors associated with residential treatment use for Hispanic women IDUs were whether or not they had received mental health services and whether or not they had received services through the criminal justice system. Having health insurance was an especially important enabling factor associated with using methadone maintenance treatment. Those with health insurance were more than six times more likely to use methadone compared to those without health insurance.

Implications: The paper discusses specific social work practice implications including the need for social work practitioners to promote services such as residential treatment, to be trained in the treatment of co-occurring mental health disorders especially among women in residential treatment and the need to establish close linkages with the mental health and criminal justice systems.

See more of Substance Abuse in Women
See more of Oral and Poster

See more of Celebrating a Decade of SSWR (January 13 - 16, 2005)