# Behavior Change Components to Enhance Opioid Disposal After Surgery

> **NIH NIH K23** · UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH · 2024 · $198,720

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
This is an application for a K23 award for Dr. Lyen Huang, a surgeon and health services researcher at the
University of Utah. Dr. Huang is establishing himself as a young investigator in perioperative patient safety. His
current research focuses on reducing our healthcare system’s contributions to the opioid crisis. This K23 will
enable Dr. Huang to accomplish the following goals: (1) develop expertise in using patient-facing behavior
change components for promoting healthy behaviors, (2) develop expertise in implementation science to close
the gap more rapidly between research and health system interventions, (3) gain leadership and management
skills to support transdisciplinary, multi-institutional research and trials, and (4) transition to an independent
research career. To achieve these goals, Dr. Huang has assembled a mentoring team comprised of a primary
mentor, Dr. Kimberly Kaphingst, a leading researcher in health literacy, patient-provider communication, and
behavior change interventions; and a co-mentor, Dr. Alex Sox-Harris, a national expert in surgical and
addiction health services research and implementation science. Dr. Huang also has five advisors with
expertise in surgical leadership; perioperative, addiction medicine, and cancer health equity interventions;
pragmatic trials in rural communities; clinical trials; biostatistics; and survey methodology.
Although 42 million patients are prescribed opioids after surgery each year, we currently lack an effective and
scalable intervention for motivating patients to dispose of leftover opioids. Few patients dispose of their leftover
opioids, and existing interventions have shown mixed real-world results. Instead, patients insecurely store,
misuse, or share opioids putting themselves, families, and communities at risk. The objective of Dr. Huang’s
research is to develop and implement a theory- and evidence-based opioid disposal intervention. Dr. Huang
will (Aim 1) evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of behavior change components to enhance the University
of Utah’s current disposal intervention; (Aim 2) prepare for implementation and evaluation in different
populations and settings; and (Aim 3) test and refine the enhanced opioid disposal intervention. The expected
outcome will provide the evidence for multi-institutional trials of an intervention to promote safe opioid disposal
across the country. The proposed research is innovative in the application of behavior change and
implementation theories to the prevention of iatrogenic contributions to the opioid crisis and the use of an
ongoing system-wide opioid disposal intervention allowing for rapid, iterative refinement and evaluation.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10865431
- **Project number:** 1K23DA060310-01
- **Recipient organization:** UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH
- **Principal Investigator:** Lyen Camille Huang
- **Activity code:** K23 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $198,720
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-05-01 → 2028-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10865431

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10865431, Behavior Change Components to Enhance Opioid Disposal After Surgery (1K23DA060310-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10865431. Licensed CC0.

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