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Implementing Technology and Medication Assisted Treatment Team Training in Rural Colorado (IT MATTTRS)

A program that aims to expand access to medications for opioid use disorder by educating and training the medical workforce that is able to deliver this intervention

IT MATTRS Colorado, a program in the rural eastern and southern part of the state through the High Plains Research Network, aims to increase medical practice awareness and knowledge of opioid use disorder (OUD) and medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) to help all individuals in a practice better understand and support patients. The program came about after the recognition that there was a lack of community knowledge and awareness of OUD and MOUD, limited access to diagnostic and treatment services for OUD, and lack of MOUD services in general. 

The initial steps taken by this ongoing project to expand access to MOUD and increase provider competence were to increase local community awareness and knowledge by transforming the complex language and concepts of OUD and medication treatment into locally relevant, actionable messages and materials. Next, evidence-based education on MOUD was made available both onsite and via online training models. Opisafe, a web-based MOUD patient engagement and monitoring system that provides patient-centered tracking, will be made available to the training sites. 

More detailed information on the program can be found in these presentations here and here. 

A preliminary culmination of resources developed by IT MATTRS to assist practices in implementing MOUD can be found here. This program model appears in the peer-reviewed literature here. 

Nearly 450 staff members have completed the IT MATTTRs Team Training including 103 providers. 

Continuum of Care
Treatment
Type of Evidence
Peer-reviewed
Response Approach
Educational
Medications for Opioid Use Disorder
Peer-reviewed Article
Building Capacity for Medication Assisted Treatment in Rural Primary Care Practices: The IT MATTTRs Practice Team Training
Translating the complex medical jargon of opioid use disorder and medication assisted treatment into locally relevant messages in rural Colorado using Boot Camp Translation
Does a Rural Community-Based Intervention Improve Knowledge and Attitudes of Opioid Use Disorder and Medication-Assisted Treatment? A Report From the IT MATTTRs Study
Related Resources
Implementing Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder in Rural Primary Care: Environmental Scan Volume 1
Implementing Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder in Rural Primary Care: Environmental Scan Volume 2 Tools and Resources
Medications for Opioid Use Disorder Save Lives
Opioid Use Disorder: Challenges and Opportunities in Rural Communities
Primary Care: On the Front Lines of the Opioid Epidemic
Remedy for the Rural Opioid Epidemic: Leaders Discuss Medication-Assisted Addiction Treatment in Primary Care
Using Telehealth to Identify and Manage Health and Substance Use Disorder Conditions in Rural Areas
Using Telehealth to Support Opioid Use Disorder

Evidence of Program Effectiveness

Formal evaluation of this program is supported by a grant and underway. 

Preliminary data reports that: Nearly 450 staff members have completed the IT MATTTRs Team Training including 103 providers, 208 clinical support staff, and 106 administrative support staff. 

"441 team members at 42 PCPs were trained, including 22% clinicians, 47% clinical support staff, 24% administrative support staff. Survey respondents reported high levels of satisfaction, including 82% reporting improved understanding of the topic, and 68% identifying actions to apply information. Self-rated ability was significantly higher after training for all items, including ability to identify patients for MAT and to manage patients receiving MAT...The IT MATTTRs Practice Team Training successfully engaged PCP team members in diverse roles in MAT for OUD training and increased self-efficacy to deliver MAT." (Zittleman et al., 2020)

"Partnering with local community members resulted in the successful development and implementation of community-based interventions, exposure to which was associated with OUD knowledge and beliefs. Locally created interventions should be included in comprehensive approaches to stem the OUD epidemic." (Curcija et al., 2020)