The impact of a brief motivational intervention on unprotected sex and sex while high among drug-positive emergency department patients who receive STI/HIV VC/T and drug treatment referral as standard of care

AIDS Behav. 2012 Jul;16(5):1203-16. doi: 10.1007/s10461-012-0134-0.

Abstract

This randomized, controlled trial, conducted among out-of-treatment heroin/cocaine users at an emergency department visit, tests the impact on sexual risk of adding brief motivational intervention (B-MI) to point-of-service testing, counseling and drug treatment referral. 1,030 enrollees aged 18-54 received either voluntary counseling/testing (VC/T) with drug treatment referral, or VC/T, referral, and B-MI, delivered by an outreach worker. We measured number and proportion of non-protected sex acts (last 30 days) at 6 and 12 months (n = 802). At baseline, 70% of past-30-days sex acts were non-protected; 35% of sex acts occurred while high; 64% of sexual acts involved main, 24% casual and 12% transactional sex partners; 1.7% tested positive for an STI, and 8.8% for HIV. At six or 12 month follow-up, 20 enrollees tested positive for Chlamydia and/or Gonorrhea, and 6 enrollees HIV sero-converted. Self-reported high-risk behaviors declined in both groups with no significant between-group differences in behaviors or STI/HIV incidence.

Publication types

  • Randomized Controlled Trial
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Boston / epidemiology
  • Chlamydia Infections / epidemiology*
  • Chlamydia Infections / prevention & control
  • Chlamydia Infections / transmission
  • Directive Counseling / methods*
  • Emergency Service, Hospital
  • Female
  • Follow-Up Studies
  • Gonorrhea / epidemiology*
  • Gonorrhea / prevention & control
  • Gonorrhea / transmission
  • HIV Seropositivity / epidemiology*
  • HIV Seropositivity / transmission
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Mass Screening
  • Middle Aged
  • Motivation
  • Referral and Consultation
  • Sexual Behavior / statistics & numerical data
  • Sexual Partners
  • Substance-Related Disorders / complications
  • Substance-Related Disorders / epidemiology*
  • Unsafe Sex
  • Young Adult