Staffing and supports for implementing cross-system interventions with peer mentors
Data files
Sep 18, 2025 version files 90.53 KB
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COSTARS_Focus_Group_Discussion_Guide.pdf
20.34 KB
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COSTARS_Supervision_Needs_Assessment_Survey_Results.csv
27.84 KB
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COSTARS_Supervision_Needs_Assessment_Survey.pdf
39.91 KB
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README.md
2.44 KB
Abstract
The overdose and substance use disorder epidemic has had devasting consequences for families since parental substance use disorders put children at elevated risk of abuse and neglect To address this dual crisis, 53 Ohio county child welfare agencies are implementing Sobriety Treatment and Recovery Teams (START), an effective intervention for improving parents’ access to substance use disorder treatments (including Medication Assisted Treatment), sobriety, and reunification with their children. However, 1/3 of Ohio START teams (mostly rural or Appalachian) stopped serving families because of high turnover among case workers and family peer mentors. Family peer mentors are peer supporters with lived substance use disorder recovery and child welfare histories who help parents navigate across systems, but often leave their position after feeling unsupported and stigmatized within child welfare agencies. Supervision coaching has the potential to improve supportive supervision practices in child welfare agencies, and create healthy work environments that support staff retention, and continued implementation which is needed to address the overdose crisis among families. This project will test the effectiveness of a supervision coaching strategy to promote workforce stability and START implementation while also creating conditions for strategy sustainment in Ohio’s child welfare system. This Hybrid Type III implementation-effectiveness study will test the impact of CrOss System Technical Assistance for Retaining Staff (COSTARS), a supervision coaching strategy for child welfare supervisors focused on supportive supervision practices, destigmatizing substance use disorder, and improving collaboration between child welfare and substance use disorder treatment systems. Building on our earlier research and partnerships, the goal of the R61 phase is to refine and build the COSTARS model. R61 Aim 1: We will tailor COSTARS to local supervisor, family peer mentor and caseworker needs by convening a community workgroup, conducting a supervision needs assessment, and developing a manual and fidelity measure for COSTARS. R61 Aim 2: Through a series of in-person and virtual didactic training, coaching, and fidelity feedback sessions, we will train COSTARS coaches (a peer coach paired with an expert supervision coach) to competency. The goal of the R33 phase is to investigate the real-world effects of COSTARS. Using a stepped wedge cluster-randomized implementation trial design, COSTARS will be delivered to 40 Ohio START teams in 4 waves. R33 Aim 1: Drawing on annual survey data from all staff members, we will examine the effects of COSTARS on perceptions of their work environment, and retention. R33 Aim 2: We will analyze program records from 1300 parents expected to participate in START to examine the effects of COSTARS on service timeliness, implementation fidelity, and parental outcomes. The proposed study is significant because we will build child welfare system capacity to address the opioid epidemic and address treatment inequities in rural and Appalachian communities, where overdoses and child maltreatment are especially high. This study is part of the NIH’s Helping to End Addiction Long-term (HEAL) initiative to speed scientific solutions to the national opioid public health crisis. The NIH HEAL Initiative bolsters research across NIH to improve treatment for opioid misuse and addiction.
Dataset DOI: 10.5061/dryad.1g1jwsv88
Description of the data and file structure
For the R61 phase of this project, we collected data Supervision Needs Assessment which assessed reasons for turnover among Ohio START staff, perceived acceptability of a supervision leadership institute, and preferred topics for supervision support. This included a survey of administrative leaders (n= 87, 49% response rate) administered between January 14 and February 4, 2025. We also completed three focus groups with Family Peer Mentors (n=16, out of 50) on January 20, 2025 and three focus groups with Caseworkers (n=9, out of 60) on February 4, 2025. This data informed development of the COSTARS model for supervision support.
Files and variables
File: COSTARS_Focus_Group_Discussion_Guide.pdf
Description: Questions asked in semi-structured focus groups with Ohio START family peer mentors and caseworkers.
File: COSTARS_Supervision_Needs_Assessment_Survey.pdf
Description: Questions asked of Ohio START supervisors and administrators in a Qualtrics survey.
File: COSTARS_Supervision_Needs_Assessment_Survey_Results.csv
Description: Responses received on the COSTARS Supervision Needs Assessment Survey between January 16 and February 5, 2025. All questions were displayed to all participants. Empty cells in the table indicate that the survey respondent chose to skip that question. This survey also collected demographic information and several verbatim text entry fields. These fields were removed from this submission due to the potential identifiability of respondents and the employees they described.
Our research partners at the Public Children Services Association of Ohio request to be notified if you plan to use this data. Please contact Ohio START program administrators through the web form at https://ohiostart.org/
Code/software
Files are presented in the widely accessible PDF and .csv formats.
Access information
Other publicly accessible locations of the data:
- N/A
Data was derived from the following sources:
- N/A
Human subjects data
Participants in this research have consented to the sharing of de-identified data. In the interest of de-identification, we have removed all participant, county, and agency names.
