Users of cannabis-only are less likely to accept brief interventions than other substance use profiles in a sample of people living with HIV/AIDS.

Abstract

Research has shown that people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) engage in increased rates of substance use, which has a number of potential negative health outcomes. Increased legalization of cannabis is likely to further increase the availability and use of cannabis in this population. Efforts have been made to integrate screening and intervention resources as part of an individual's routine healthcare visits. Though brief approaches such as Screening and Brief Intervention (SBIRT) have shown promise in addressing alcohol use, results are mixed in addressing cannabis use. The present study investigated how individuals reporting cannabis use responded to an invitation to engage in a brief negotiated intervention (BNI). PLWHA participated in a self-administered tablet computer-based version of SBIRT. Patients screened as having at-risk, high-risk, or dependent substance use (N = 331) were eligible to receive the BNI. Of these patients, 101 reported cannabis-only use, with or without alcohol. Binary logistic regressions controlling for Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test and Drug Abuse Screening Test score and demographics, found that cannabis-only use was significantly related to declining the BNI. Cannabis-only engagement predicts lower BNI acceptance rates than other substance use profiles; inappropriate screening tools may be one reason for this discrepancy. Implications and directions for future research are discussed. Findings are relevant in modifying SBIRT for cannabis use. To our knowledge, this is the first work to evaluate acceptance of brief interventions for cannabis as compared to other substances and brief intervention acceptance in a sample of PLWHA.