A Chatbot Utilizing Machine Learning and Natural Language Processing to Implement the Brief Negotiation Interview to Improve Engagement in Buprenorphine Treatment among Justice-Involved Individuals

Project Summary/Abstract This Administrative Supplement proposes the participation of a 3-member team from the Center for Progressive Recovery, LLC (CPR) in the Innovation Corps (I-Corps™), an intensive, 8-week program focused on developing a successful commercialization plan and business model for technology-driven start-ups funded by NIH’s SBIR Phase I mechanism. The program would entail training, as well as structure and accountability around conducting 100 interviews with key stakeholders and others whose expertise would inform the company’s plans. The SBIR Phase I award to CPR (the small business concern, SBC) that this application is predicated on addresses the problem that the people at the greatest risk of dying from an opioid overdose are the least likely to get life-saving medication. Justice- involved individuals coming out of prison have the highest risk of death by overdose (8x greater than the general population), yet only 1 in 20 of these individuals receive buprenorphine (bup), a safe, effective medication that has been shown to reduce a person’s risk of death by overdose by half. There is an urgent need to facilitate an increase in bup treatment engagement among these individuals. Two of the top barriers to receiving bup for this population are 1) system level barriers and, 2) low levels of individual motivation. We will disrupt system level barriers by circumventing the pieces of the probation system that are stigmatizing and reduce the chances of a bup referral with an artificial intelligence (AI)-based chatbot. This will be the only tool needed to receive a referral to a bup provider. We will also address low individual motivation with the chatbot by programming it to deliver the efficacious Brief Negotiation Interview (BNI) without the need for a trained human. Our aims are: Aim 1: Design and develop a prototype chatbot to motivate bup engagement. Milestones: (a) human-centered design (HCD) interviews with key stakeholders; and (b) creation of a chatbot using machine learning (ML) and natural language processing (NLP) that is integrated with a mobile application; Aim 2: Conduct a 4-week pilot study with 60 probationers randomly assigned to the BNI Chatbot or Digital Resources (i.e., Digitally-delivered OUD and buprenorphine education and referral resources). The following 3-member team has deep expertise in developing and bringing to market digital health solutions and was formed to pursue the unique benefits of the I-Corps program. All 3 are able to meet the time-intensive requirements of the training program: 1) Michael V. Pantalon, Ph.D., CEO; 2) Marianne S. Pantalon, Ph.D., PI, and 3) Thomas Wheeler, Industry Expert and CTO. With this sophisticated program, CPR would be in a much better position to secure SBIR Phase II funding.Project Narrative This Administrative Supplement proposes the participation of a 3-member team from the Center for Progressive Recovery, LLC (CPR) in the Innovation Corps (I-Corps™), an intensive, 8-week program focused on developing a successful commercialization plan and business model for technology-driven start-ups funded by NIH’s SBIR Phase I mechanism. The program would entail training, as well as structure and accountability around conducting 100 interviews with key stakeholders and others whose expertise would inform the company’s plans. The specific aims of the SBIR Phase I awarded to CPR (the small business concern) that this application is predicated on are: 1) to design and develop a prototype of an AI-powered Brief Negotiation Interview Chatbot to motivate probationers (who have among the highest rates of death by opioid overdose) to engage in buprenorphine, a treatment that reduces overdoses by half, and 2) to conduct a 4-week pilot study with 60 probationers randomly assigned to the BNI Chatbot or Digital Resources.