Fathering in Recovery

Abstract The goal of this Phase I project, Fathering in Recovery (FIR), is to provide a severely underserved population, fathers with opioid misuse, with the skills necessary to be effective parents to their children. To provide this training, FIR will tailor Fathering Through Change (FTC), an adaptation of Parent Management Training – Oregon (PMTO), the single largest `familyandapos; of evidence‐based programs on best practice lists such as The California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare and Blueprints for Healthy Youth Development, to the well‐defined needs of fathers with opioid misuse. FIR will be provided for fathers engaged in opioid use treatment through web‐based mobile technology to maximize accessibility and consistency of intervention. In addition to creating considerable reach and accessibility to fathers, FIRandapos;s individually tailored interactive instructional approach engages participants in learning content and enhances father self-efficacy and engagement in the fathering role. In Phase I, we will use an iterative formative development process informed by stakeholder input and will develop and test four pilot modules. The initial modules will focus on building engagement and will cover the key parenting skills of emotional self‐regulation, giving effective directions, and delivering positive reinforcement. Outcomes will focus on the interventionandapos;s feasibility, acceptability, and demonstrated within-group pre‐post intervention change in targeted domains. In Phase II we will develop additional modules and supplemental tools and resources, integrate mobile technology, and optimize delivery to most effectively integrate within existing opioid misuse treatment contexts. Finally, we will use a pragmatic randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of FIR in reducing opioid misuse and improving father and child outcomes.Project Narrative The majority of men experiencing opioid misuse and receiving treatment are fathers. Substance misuse, transitions between in-patient and out-patient treatment, and reunification as a family, all create considerable strain and are predictive of a host of negative long-term outcomes including increased rates of relapse for fathers and elevated risk for behavioral, emotional, and substance use problems in their children. Evidence- based parenting interventions for fathers are lacking in general, yet are exceedingly rare for fathers participating in opioid misuse treatment, even though the extant research literature suggests the integration of services is not only timely but may help engage and retain fathers in treatment and produce protective factors for children. The goal of this project is to develop and evaluate a prototype of a usable innovative web-based program that integrates existing evidence-based parenting programs, yet tailored specifically to fathers with opioid misuse and designed for the opioid treatment context in order to promote the implementation and dissemination of father specific empirically-supported treatment.