A descriptive analysis of participant characteristics and patterns of substance use in the CSAT methamphetamine treatment project: The first six months

The CSAT Methamphetamine Treatment Project (MTP) is a multisite study with a two-fold purpose: to assess the feasibility and outcomes generated by a t echnology transfer of the Matrix treatment model for methamphetamine (MA) a buse into several community-based treatment programs, and specifically to c ompare outcomes of treatment as usual at each site with outcomes of the Mat rix model, as implemented in each site. The study comprises seven sites, ge ographically situated in Hawaii, Northern and Southern California, and Mont ana. This article presents a demographic description of the cohort, and des cribes patterns of drug use, abuse, and related problems among the 169 part icipants recruited in the first six months of the study, from April through September 1999. Specific analyses presented include: demographic compositi on of the sample with respect to gender, age, ethnicity, education complete d, employment status, and income; primary drug used, and mean percent of da ys using various drugs including MG alcohol, and marijuana; and percent of sample reporting various routes of drug administration. Mean baseline Addic tion Severity Index composite scores are presented that describe medical, e mployment, alcohol, drug, legal, family/social, and psychiatric status for the sample. Also presented hen: are comparisons of this preliminary populat ion to other populations reported in the literature. This early subset of M TP participants is similar to other methamphetamine-abusing populations des cribed in the literature in age, years of education, income, and mean years of use. However, because of its multisite structure and the locations of i ts constituent sites, the MTP population has greater variation in ethnic ma keup than do populations from other studies, offering an opportunity to pro vide useful new information about drug use patterns and treatment responses in populations not previously studied.