Resumen de Effects of Sustained Abstinence Among Treated Substance-Abusing Homeless Persons on Housing and Employment.
Jesse B. Milby, Joseph E. Schumacher, Dennis Wallace, Rudy Vuchinich, Stephen T. Mennemeyer, Stefan G. Kertesz
Objectives. We examined whether cocaine-dependent homeless persons had stable housing and were employed 6, 12, and 18 months after they entered a randomized controlled trial comparing 2 treatments. Methods. One group (n=103) received abstinence-contingent housing, vocational training, and work; another group (n=103) received the same intervention plus cognitive behavioral day treatment. We examined baseline and early treatment variables for association with long-term housing and employment. Results. Although the enhanced-treatment group achieved better abstinence rates, the groups did not differ in long-term housing and employment stability. However, consecutive weeks of abstinence during treatment (and to a lesser extent, older age and male gender) predicted long-term housing and employment stability after adjustment for baseline differences in employment, housing, and treatment. Conclusions. Our data showed a relationship of abstinence with housing stability. Contrasting these results with the increasingly popular Housing First interventions reveals important gaps in our knowledge to be addressed in future research. (Am J Public Health. 2010;100:913-918. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2008. 152975) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
