Pipe Distribution as a Harm Reduction Service for People Who Use Methamphetamine.

Background: Methamphetamine use is disproportionately high in rural settings, with rates increasing during the COVID-19 pandemic. While syringe service programs reduce disease transmission among people who inject drugs, limited research exists around the value of smoking equipment, specifically pipes, in minimizing harms associated with rural methamphetamine use.

Methods: We conducted semi-structured interviews with people who use methamphetamine in rural southern Illinois.

Barriers to retention in inpatient and residential drug treatment among persons who use opioids and/or injection drugs living in the rural U.S.

Aim: Barriers to retention in inpatient and residential care for persons who use drugs are understudied in the rural context. We sought to better understand barriers to retention in inpatient and residential drug treatment in a large, multi-site, geographically diverse sample of persons who use opioids and/or injection drugs in the rural U.S.

Motivation and context of concurrent stimulant and opioid use among persons who use drugs in the rural United States: a multi-site qualitative inquiry.

Background: In recent years, stimulant use has increased among persons who use opioids in the rural U.S., leading to high rates of overdose and death.

Barriers to opioid use disorder treatment among people who use drugs in the rural United States: A qualitative, multi-site study.

Background: In 2020, 2.8 million people required substance use disorder (SUD) treatment in nonmetropolitan or 'rural' areas in the U.S.

Correlates of Recent HIV Testing Among People Who Inject Drugs in Rural Areas: A Multi-site Cross-Sectional Study, 2018-2020.

The Rural Opioid Initiative surveyed 2693 people who inject drugs (PWID) in eight rural U.S. areas in 2018-2020 about self-reported HIV testing in the past 6 months.

Medications for Opioid Use Disorder in Rural United States: A Critical Review of the Literature, 2004-2021.

Background: The opioid epidemic continues to be problematic in the United States (US). Medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) are a commonly used evidence-based approach to treating affected individuals, but little is known about its use in the rural US. We reviewed published literature and summarized access, barriers, and approaches to MOUD delivery in rural areas.