Honest, Open, Proud (HOP): A Peer Delivered, Co-occurring Disorders Intervention for Justice-involved Veterans | NCT07742722

NCT07742722

Overview

NCT ID: NCT07742722
Lead Sponsor: VA Office of Research and DevelopmentFED
Official Title: Honest, Open, Proud (HOP) (QUE 25-014)
Brief Summary: As many as two-thirds of Justice-involved Veterans (JIVs) have a substance-use disorder (SUD), and up to 51% have a mental health (MH) condition; however, fewer than one-third of JIVs receive MH or SUD treatment, and addressing stigma is a recommended strategy for improving Veteran willingness to engage in treatment. Honest, Open, Proud (HOP) is an evidence-based stigma reduction intervention for justice-involved Veterans that is delivered by peers, which can ultimately increase access to and engagement in care, lower rates of criminal recidivism, and improve MH and SUD outcomes. However, implementation of such interventions with high-acuity patients often requires strategies that are intensive and costly. This trial will evaluate the relative impacts and costs of using a high-intensity (vs. low-intensity) strategy to implement a peer-led, stigma reduction intervention for justice-involved Veterans with co-occurring SUD and MH disorders.
Conditions

Status and Timeline

Status: Recruiting
Last Update Posted: Aug 3, 2026Actual
Start Date: Jul 1, 2026Actual
Primary Completion Date: Jun 30, 2030Estimated
Completion Date

Participation Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study: Adult (18-64)Older Adult (65+)
Sexes Eligible for Study: All
Accepts Healthy Volunteers?: No
Eligibility Criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

Veterans who are service-connected and enrolled in a VJP program within six VA Medical Centers:

Fresno, Palo Alto, Butler, Coatesville, Pittsburgh, Wilmington, and therefore have justice involvement

Veterans who meet DSM-5 criteria for a mental health and/or substance use disorder

Veterans who are willing to participate in VA-HOP

Exclusion Criteria:

Does not have a history of justice involvement and or not enrolled in a participating site VJP program

Do not have a mental health and/or substance use disorder diagnosis

Study Plan

Study Type: Interventional
Phase: Not Applicable
Enrollment: 240Estimated
Primary Purpose: Other
Allocation: Non-Randomized
Interventional Model: Sequential Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)

Contacts and Locations

Central Contacts: David A Smelson, PsyDContact
david.smelson@va.gov(781) 687-7778

Similar Studies

Participant Group/Arms

Low IntensityActive Comparator

Audit and Feedback will be our low intensity implementation strategy. Peer specialists and key stakeholders will receive monthly data reports on VA-HOP delivery (e.g. number of sessions delivered, number of Veterans served) and fidelity data with written feedback. Peers will have the opportunity to join an optional, monthly virtual session to discuss their report with a quantitative expert.

Behavioral: Veterans Affairs-Honest, Open, Proud

High IntensityExperimental

Implementation Facilitation will be our high intensity implementation strategy. Peer specialists and other key stakeholders will participate in biweekly virtual meetings with an external facilitator. Facilitation activities serve a range of functions spanning problem-solving, relationship-building, and goal setting and planning. Activities are selected based on site progress and needs.

Behavioral: Veterans Affairs-Honest, Open, Proud