A Family-based Intervention for Drug-abusing Adults in Hong Kong

The University of Hong Kong (HKU)

Status: Completed

Conditions: Drug Abuse

Treatments: Behavioral: Family-based intervention; Other: routine care

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT04725266

200018

Details and patient eligibility

About

To develop a family-based intervention with components of engagement, family roles, affection, and competence and verify its effectiveness on drug abstinence and family functioning for drug-abusing adults in Hong Kong; To compare the difference between family-based intervention and routine care which mainly consists of individual counselling services for drug abusers.

Full description

This is a quasi-experimental trial examining the effects of a proposed family-based intervention for drug abusers on motivating them to stay drug abstinence and improve family functioning, in which 40 drug abusers with focal families (including spouses and/or children) will be recruited for intervention group receiving both family-based intervention and routine care and 40 drug abusers without involving family will be recruited for comparison group receiving routine care. In the in-take, drug-abusing subjects will be given a brief introduction and invited to provide basic background information about themselves and families. After filling the informed consent, participants will be assigned to intervention group or comparison group according to whether their family will join sessions together. After drug abusers and families fill in the online questionnaire at the baseline (T0), the intervention group will receive family-based intervention and routine care in one month, while the comparison group will receive only routine care in one month. Both groups will be assessed at two time points after intervention period (T1 = 1-month after baseline; T2 = 2-month after baseline). As hypothesized, the intervention group will show a greater reduction in the primary outcomes of drug use and greater increase in the secondary outcomes of family functioning than the comparison group. A repeated-measures analysis of covariance will be conducted to assess the effects of family-based intervention.

Enrollment: 82 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 55 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria for intervention group:

1. Adults aged 18 to 55
2. Have used drugs in the past 90 days
3. At the time of case recruitment, the subject is engaged in an intimate relationship with a spouse/partner, or having a child/children
4. Understand oral and written Chinese

Exclusion criteria for intervention group:

1. Taking other treatments during intervention
2. The spouse or child of DA are not available to participate in the program

Inclusion criteria for comparison group:

1. Adults aged 18 to 55
2. Have used drugs in the past 90 days
3. Understand oral and written Chinese

Exclusion criteria for comparison group:

1. Taking other treatments during intervention

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Non-Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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82 participants in 2 patient groups

family-based intervention plus routine care

Experimental group

Description:

This group of participants including drug abusers and their families will be receiving family-based intervention which is a well-designed intervention with group sessions and routine care provided by professional social workers in local social service center.

Treatment:

Other: routine care

Behavioral: Family-based intervention

routine care

Active Comparator group

Description:

The group of participants will receive routine care which is widely used in social service providers and mainly includes individual counselling service for drug abusers.

Treatment:

Other: routine care