Ohio Buprenorphine Implementation Study

This randomized controlled trial will test ways to implement buprenorphine through payer-treatment agency partnerships with Ohio counties. Participating county boards and agencies will be randomized into two study conditions. Under one condition, participants will work on implementing the medication using only the NIATx process improvement model. In this model, a team selects an aim, collects data, and tests a series of small, rapid changes in quick succession, finally adopting a change when data shows it to be effective. In the second condition, participants will combine the NIATx model with additional change strategies at the payer level. The study will also provide a buprenorphine training program for participating physicians.

Partners in the study include the Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services (ODADAS) and the Ohio Association of County Behavioral Health Authorities.

Regional information sessions on buprenorphine began in Fall 2012, with the kickoff on the NIATx model of process improvement in February 2013.