Serious Bacterial Infections and Hepatitis C Virus Among People Who Inject Drugs: A Syndemic or Intertwined Epidemics?

Limited research has examined the possible synergistic interrelationships between serious bacterial infections (SBIs) of the heart (i.e., endocarditis), bone, spine, brain, or joints (e.

Contextual barriers and enablers to establishing an addiction-focused consultation team for hospitalized adults with opioid use disorder.

Background: Hospitalization presents an opportunity to begin people with opioid use disorder (OUD) on medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) and link them to care after discharge; regrettably, people admitted to the hospital with an underlying OUD typically do not receive MOUD and are not connected with subsequent treatment for their condition. To address this gap, we launched a multi-site randomized controlled trial to test the effectiveness of a hospital-based addiction consultation team (the Substance Use Treatment and Recovery Team (START)) consisting of an addiction medicine specialist and care manager team that provide collaborative care and a specified intervention to people with OUD during the inpatient stay. Successful implementation of new practices can be impacted by organizational context, though no previous studies have examined context prior to implementation of addiction consultation services (ACS).

Prison Buprenorphine Implementation and Postrelease Opioid Use Disorder Outcomes.

Importance: Agonist medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD), buprenorphine and methadone, in carceral settings might reduce the risk of postrelease opioid overdose but are uncommonly offered. In April 2019, the Massachusetts Department of Correction (MADOC), the state prison system, provided buprenorphine for incarcerated individuals in addition to previously offered injectable naltrexone.

Objective: To evaluate postrelease outcomes after buprenorphine implementation.

Diversion of medications to treat opioid use disorder: Qualitative findings from formerly incarcerated adults in Massachusetts.

Background: Carceral officials often cite diversion of medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) (e.g., buprenorphine) as a reason for not offering MOUD treatment in jails and prisons with little understanding of patient perspectives.

COVID-19 impact on opioid overdose after jail release in Massachusetts.

Introduction: Release from incarceration is a high-risk period for opioid overdose. Concern about COVID-19 spread in jails led to early releases; it is unknown whether pandemic era releases of persons with opioid use disorder (OUD) contributed to increases in community overdose rates.

Methods: Observational data compared overdose rates three months after release among jailed persons with OUD released before (9/1/2019-3/9/2020) and during the pandemic (3/10/2020-8/10/2020) from seven jails in Massachusetts.

Jail-based reentry programming to support continued treatment with medications for opioid use disorder: Qualitative perspectives and experiences among jail staff in Massachusetts.

Background: Individuals with opioid use disorder released to communities after incarceration experience an elevated risk for overdose death. Massachusetts is the first state to mandate county jails to deliver all FDA approved medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD). The present study considered perspectives around coordination of post-release care among jail staff engaged in MOUD programs focused on coordination of care to the community.