Treatment Adherence, Health Outcomes & Cost Study

The Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) leads Federal efforts to treat mental illness by promoting mental health and, when possible, to prevent mental illness. CMHS HIV/AIDS programs target prevention, education, and delivery of quality mental health treatment services to people living with HIV/AIDS.

In Fiscal Year 1998 the first-ever Federal initiative designed to study integrated mental health, substance use, and primary medical HIV treatment interventions was initiated by CMHS and five other Federal entities. This five- year study is the first Federal effort to determine if an integrated approaches to care improve treatment adherence and produce better health outcomes for multiply diagnosed individuals with HIV/AIDS, a substance use disorder, and a mental disorder. The identification and analysis of the costs of providing integrated approaches to care is a major component of this initiative. Primarily through random assignment, over 1,000 participants are participating in different interventions or in care-as-usual.

The HIV/AIDS Costs study reflects the collaboration of six Federal entities, including CMHS, which has lead administrative responsibility, and the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT), both of which are components of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA); the HIV/AIDS Bureau in the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA); and the National Institute of Mental Health, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse, all of which are part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). SAMHSA, HRSA, and NIH are all agencies within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

In Fiscal Year 1998, cooperative agreements were awarded to eight universities, research institutions, and hospitals. They are: Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA; Duke University, Durham, NC; The Hektoen Institute, Chicago, IL; Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, NY; National Development and Research Institutes, Inc., New York, NY; University of Missouri-St. Louis, St. Louis, MO; University of Washington, Seattle, WA; and The Well-Being Institute, Inc., Ann Arbor, MI.; James Bell & Associates operates the coordinating center for the program.

Each site's integrated care intervention responds to local variations in the availability and accessibility of services for the target population. Case-specific data on the amount and type of intervention services received by participants assigned to treatment groups will enable sensitive analyses of intervention "dose effect" and costs.

Contact Information:

Mary C. Knipmeyer, Ph.D.
HIV/AIDS Treatment Adherence, Health Outcomes & Cost Study Program Director
CMHS/Office of the Associate Director for Medical Affairs
PHONE: 301- 443-0688
FAX: 301- 443-0737

CMH99-5022

11/02