Intervention group participants were referred to local and statewide alcohol treatment, paid bus fare to these facilities, and paid to provide data on their use of health services at biweekly check-ins with program staff.
Eligible participants were adults experiencing homelessness who had alcohol use disorders; who lived in or near Albuquerque, NM, for three months or more; and who did not have serious disabilities or dependent children. The intervention lasted four months.
The effectiveness of Referrals to Substance Use Treatment and Transportation Assistance when compared with the effectiveness of Housing with Peer Support reveals the effect of being referred to a set of services that include those unique to Referrals to Substance Use Treatment and Transportation Assistance, or how much better the offer of Referrals to Substance Use Treatment and Transportation Assistance meets participants’ needs compared with the offer of Housing with Peer Support. Both interventions included opportunities for intervention services, but referrals to low-intensity services were unique to Referrals to Substance Use Treatment and Transportation Assistance. This evaluation also examined Housing Without Peer Support and Housing with Peer Support compared with Referrals to Substance Use Treatment and Transportation Assistance.
The Referrals to Substance Use Treatment and Transportation Assistance intervention provided low-intensity services to adults who were experiencing homelessness who had alcohol use disorders to increase positive outcomes relating to substance use, residential stability, and employment. This evaluation directly compared Referrals to Substance Use Treatment and Transportation Assistance to a separate intervention of Housing with Peer Support to understand which of the two interventions might be more effective; the distinctive features of Referrals to Substance Use Treatment and Transportation Assistance were low-intensity services, such as referrals to local and statewide alcohol treatment, paid bus fare, and payment for providing data.