Voluntary Pregnancy Screening at Syringe Exchanges: A Feasibility Study

Interventions to Support Engagement in Addiction Care Postpartum: Principles and Pitfalls

There is a fundamental disconnect between the optimal management of addiction in general and care delivery in pregnancy and postpartum. Addiction is a chronic condition requiring some degree of management across the life course. Yet, in the US, reproductive care is episodic and centers more on pregnancy than at other stages of the reproductive life course. Pregnancy is prioritized in access to insurance as almost all pregnant people are Medicaid eligible but access ends at varying points postpartum. This results in a structural mismatch: the episodic management of the chronic condition of addiction only within gestational periods. Though people with substance use disorder (SUD) may access care in pregnancy, treatment attrition is common postpartum. Postpartum is a time of increased vulnerabilities where insurance churn and newborn caretaking responsibilities collide in a context of care withdrawal from the health system and health providers. In part in consequence, return to use, SUD recurrence, overdose, and overdose death are more common postpartum than in pregnancy, and drug deaths have become a leading cause of maternal deaths in the US. This review addresses interventions to support engagement in addiction care postpartum. We begin with a scoping review of model programs and evidence-informed interventions that have been shown to increase continuation of care postpartum. We then explore the realities of contemporary care through a review of clinical and ethical principles, with particular attention to harm reduction. We conclude with suggestions of strategies (clinical, research, and policy) to improve care postpartum and highlight potential pitfalls in the uptake of evidence-based and person-centered services.

Perspectives of researchers with lived experience in implementation science research: Opportunities to close the research-to-practice gap in substance use systems of care

Background

The field of implementation science acknowledges the importance of diversity within research teams including members from diverse disciplines and with lived expertise in practical implementation (e.g., administrators, front-line workers, patients/clients). Gaps remain in the successful implementation of proven substance use treatment interventions.

Methods

This paper will outline the rationale for the purposeful inclusion of researchers with lived experience (RLE) related to substance use disorder (SUD) within implementation science research studies focused on improving SUD services.

Results

We posit that researchers with such experience can help address research-to-practice gaps by (1) building strong community partnerships, (2) engaging in conversations around effective interventions through knowledge translation, (3) providing community-congruent approaches to evaluation, and (4) aiding in dissemination and sustainability efforts.

Conclusions

We end by offering recommendations for researchers without lived experience as they intentionally collaborate with RLE.

Client Characteristics Associated with Desire for Additional Services at Syringe Exchange Programs

Objectives

The objective of this study was to explore the relationship between client characteristics and desired services offered at syringe exchange program (SEP) sites among women who inject drugs (WWID). We investigated whether a desire for additional services varied as a function of these client characteristics.

Methods

A sample of 69 women who were syringe exchange clients participated in a survey about adding services to syringe exchange programs. Three Poisson regression analyses were run to examine if client age, education, housing status, polysubstance use, and previous pregnancies were associated with overall desire for services, desire for health-related services, and desire basic needs services.

Results

Participant characteristics of polysubstance use (IRR 1.62, 95% CI 1.34-1.96; p < .01) and greater number of previous pregnancies (IRR 1.14, 95% CI 1.08-1.22; p < .05), were predictive of a greater number of desired services. Engagement in polysubstance use was predictive of a greater number of desired basic need services (IRR 1.45, 95% CI 1.23-1.70; p < .05).

Conclusions

WWID desired services at SEP sites can inform policymakers to formulate policies to better promote utilization of health-related and basic need services among WWID and, in turn, facilitate improved outcomes for WWID.