A Validation Study of the Opening Minds Provider Attitudes towards Opioid-Use Scale: Implications for Stigma Reduction Education Program Evaluation

Opioid crisis has been declared a public health emergency. One strategy to alleviate the opioid epidemic is through stigma reduction education programs. Stigma is identified as a major factor preventing people with opioid use disorders (OUD) from seeking and receiving quality medical services. This study explores the potential of the scale Opening Minds Provider Attitudes Towards Opioid-Use Scale (OM-PATOS; Mental Health Commission of Canada, 2020) as a measure of public stigma towards people with OUD. The study used Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) to examine the construct validity of the scale. The data used was from a multi-state survey conducted by the University of Georgia Family and Consumer Sciences Extension program. The results provided preliminary evidence of the valid use of the scale to measure public stigma. Implications on how the results inform evaluation of stigma reduction education programs are discussed.

Diane Bales, PhD; Maria Bowie, DrPH