The Newest Study Supported by Portland Psychotherapy: Helping People with the Stigma of Injection Drug Use and HIV in Russia

Stigma is a pervasive problem that can negatively impact healthcare outcomes for those affected by it. Stigmatized groups, such as people living with HIV who inject drugs, can face many barriers to care that stem from societal attitudes toward their condition. HIV and substance use stigma, when combined, can lead to further avoidance of care and poor health outcomes.

The findings from the SCRIPT (Stigma Coping to Reduce HIV Risks and Improve substance use Prevention and Treatment) study were recently published. This study was conducted by Karsten Lunze, MD, of Boston University Medical School, in collaboration with Jason Luoma, the CEO of Portland Psychotherapy, and aimed to test an intervention he help create to help people cope with intersectional HIV and substance use stigma. The research studied people with HIV who inject drugs, who often face significant barriers to accessing care due to both HIV and substance use stigma.

To develop the intervention, the research team modified an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) approach to target people with HIV who inject drugs. ACT is a type of cognitive-behavioral therapy that focuses on accepting difficult emotions and thoughts rather than trying to eliminate them. By teaching people how to cope with stigma through acceptance-based approaches, the study aims to reduce the link between internalized attitudes, fears, and shame, and healthcare avoidance behaviors.

The SCRIPT study aimed to evaluate the intervention’s effects on HIV and substance use stigma, care engagement, and injection drug use frequency. The study will also assess the intervention’s implementation by looking at participant satisfaction, intervention fidelity, and uptake.

The study found that people who received the intervention were more likely to start HIV and substance use treatment than those who did not receive the intervention. The increase in care engagement may be due to the fact that the intervention helped people to cope with stigma and reduced their avoidance of healthcare settings. The intervention was not designed to directly reduce shame and fears related to stigma, but rather focused on helping people to cope with stigma and improve their behavior and care seeking.

The implications for practice are that acceptance-based approaches can be effective in reducing stigma and improving care engagement in people with HIV who inject drugs. Healthcare providers should be trained to recognize and address intersectional stigma in their patients and use interventions that incorporate acceptance-based approaches to reduce stigma’s negative impact.

Portland Psychotherapy’s involvement in this study exemplifies the organization’s commitment to using its resources to address societal problems. By supporting research that aims to improve healthcare outcomes for stigmatized populations, Portland Psychotherapy is helping to make a positive impact on the community.

Portland Psychotherapy is now taking OHP!

After months and months of work and paperwork, we are pleased to announce that Portland Psychotherapy is now taking OHP. We are in network with:

  • Trillium
  • Care Oregon/Healthshare of Multnomah/Washington/Clackamas counties
  • Open Card

For the past year, we have been working with a DEI consulting firm to examine our policies and practices so that our organization can do more to help dismantle systemic racism and other forms of oppression. Through that process we realized that probably the single most impactful step we could take would be to take Medicaid/OHP, so that we could serve clients from a wider range of backgrounds. We have now gone through the very long process of getting ready to make this shift. Whew it’s been a lot of work, but we’re glad we’ve done it.

This greatly expands our ability to bring high quality, evidence-based mental health services to all in our community, including those in frequently underserved communities. As part of this effort, we hired Adabel Lee, Ph.D., who has extensive experience in California’s Medicaid system, to be our new OHP Services Coordinator to ensure that we are able to meet the needs of our OHP clients.  

If you are interested in looking into our OHP services as a provider or a client, you can contact us here.

Gender and sex are complex.

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Women! – We Are More Than Our Stories

This summer, I attended the first ever “Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) BootCamp for Women’s Issues.” Though I had attended a traditional ACT Bootcamp earlier this year, I was drawn to this summer event out of a desire to connect more with my community of women and to examine ways I can better serve my … Read more

Resources for self- and other-care in difficult times

Many of us have been impacted by the election results.  Whether you are feeling shock, fear, anger, sadness, confusion, disbelief, or excitement, joy, satisfaction or hope, you are likely not alone. If you have been struggling, some of these resources might be helpful (thanks to Jennifer Villatte for sharing this list).  I prefaced each with … Read more

What Makes Us Unique

Portland Psychotherapy is a clinic, research & training center with a unique business model that funds scientific research. This results in a team of therapists who are exceptionally well-trained and knowledgeable about their areas of specialty.