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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Abby L. Cosentino-Boehm, MPA, Carrie B. Oser, PhD, Michele Staton-Tindall, PhD, and Carl G. Leukefeld, DSW. Center on Drug and Alcohol Research, University of Kentucky, 643 Maxwelton Ct., Lexington, KY 40506, 859-257-9063, alcose0@uky.edu

Information on follow-up and locator methods for substance abusers is limited, particularly for rural offenders. The limited information exists partially because conducting longitudinal research with rural offenders is difficult and costly. The purpose of this presentation is to discuss locator strategies and recommend approaches that can be used during study planning and implementation. Geographically tailored approaches highlighting the differences in locating rural and urban offenders will be discussed. The location of rural substance using offenders is of particular interest to the pubic health field because the misuse of illicit drugs, especially opioids in states like Kentucky, has lead to a surge of research in the area. In order to appropriately evaluate interventions that concentrate on rural public health and economic disparities, research participants must be located and followed-up. Two longitudinal studies used the locator strategies discussed in this presentation. The first study focused on employment issues among 500 participants in a rural and an urban Kentucky Drug Court program with interviews at 12, 18, and 24-months after study entry. The second study focused on a brief HIV intervention for 800 rural probationers who completed follow-up interviews 3 and 6-months after the baseline interview. These locator strategies produced a 90-97% follow-up rate and a 96-98% location rate, depending on the study. To effectively locate rural participants, it was important for the research staff to establish rapport and to conduct multiple home and employment visits. These differences suggest the need to geographically tailor follow-up strategies to the research setting.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant in this session will be able to

• List several methods that are useful when locating rural substance abusing offenders.
• Describe how locating a rural offender may be different from an urban offender.
• Formulate tailored location strategies that may help investigators with their own research.

Keywords: Rural Populations, Substance Abuse

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered