Brown University

The Brown University Hub, titled PIERS (Providing Interventions for Enhancing Recovery during Supervision), will rigorously test a systems-change approach for increasing the use of medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) in seven community supervision sites in Rhode Island, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania. The project first uses facilitated local change teams consisting of justice and community service providers to develop and implement interorganizational linkage strategies to support access to treatment. In a second stage, individuals under community supervision will be randomly assigned to receive assistance from peer support specialists vs no peer support. The project aims to test the independent and combined effects of organizational and client-level linkage strategies on outcomes including linkage to OUD treatment, retention, satisfaction, opioid use, opioid overdoses, recidivism, and utilization of recovery services.

Study Aims

Improve service coordination between community corrections agencies and community-based treatment programs

Assist agencies in designing local solutions to support justice-involved individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD)

Measure MOUD engagement, retention, and treatment satisfaction

Determine whether client-level outcomes are further enhanced by the use of peer support specialists

Study Sites

North Carolina

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

Study Settings

Probation/parole (7)

Principal Investigators

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Rosemarie Martin

PhD, Brown University

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Damaris Rohsenow

PhD, Brown University

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Lauren Brinkley-Rubinstein

PhD, Duke University

Health Agency Partner

  • Linda Hurley, MA, CODAC Behavioral Healthcare

Justice Agency Partner

  • Jennifer Clarke, MD, Brown University