The NIATx Opioid Treatment Provider Process Improvement Learning Collaborative - Cohort II

Twenty providers from 12 states are participating in the second round of the NIATx Opioid Treatment Provider Process Improvement Learning Collaborative. The promising practices that emerged from the first round are helping this group of providers reduce time to first medication dose and increase retention in treatment.

Says NIATx coach Lynn Madden, "For opioid treatment programs, treatment retention is a primary goal. Longer treatment leads to better outcomes." Madden is coaching several of the sites, along with fellow NIATx coaches Tom Zastowney and Scott Farnum.

Many of the Cohort 2 providers are new to NIATx. One of them, Aegis Medical Systems of Canoga Park, California, used a "Five-in-Five" strategy to increase retention at one its clinics. The change was so successful, says director of clinical services Arron Hightower, that Aegis will expand the approach to all 25 sites it operates in California. Read related story.

Says Jeanne Pulvermacher, project manager, "We continue to learn ways that opioid treatment providers can improve their systems and treat more clients, while meeting funding and documentation requirements."

The participating providers will share their NIATx learning collaborative results at a closeout session at the 2012 AATOD conference in Las Vegas in April.