How do drug users define their progress in harm reduction programs? Qualitative research to develop user-generated outcomes.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Harm reduction is a relatively new and controversial model for treating drug users, with little formal research on its operation and effectiveness. In order to advance the study of harm reduction programs and our understanding of how drug users define their progress, qualitative research was conducted to develop outcomes of harm reduction programming that are culturally relevant, incremental, (i.e., capable of measuring change), and hierarchical (i.e., capable of showing how clients improve over time). METHODS: The study used nominal group technique (NGT) to develop the outcomes (phase 1) and focus group interviews to help validate the findings (phase 2). Study participants were recruited from a large harm-reduction program in New York City and involved approximately 120 client

SUBMITTER: Ruefli T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC516446 | biostudies-literature | 2004 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature