Buprenorphine/naloxone initiation and referral as a quality improvement intervention for patients who live with opioid use disorder: quantitative evaluation of provincial spread to 107 rural and urban Alberta emergency departments.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

Opioid use disorder is a major public health concern that accounts for a high number of potential years of life lost. Buprenorphine/naloxone is a recommended treatment for opioid use disorder that can be started in the emergency department (ED). We developed an ED-based program to initiate buprenorphine/naloxone for eligible patients who live with opioid use disorder, and to provide unscheduled, next-day follow-up referrals to an opioid use disorder treatment clinic (in person or virtual) for continuing patient care throughout Alberta.

Methods

In this quality improvement initiative, we supported local ED teams to offer buprenorphine/naloxone to eligible patients presenting to the ED with suspected opioid use disorder and refer these patients for follow-up care. Pr

SUBMITTER: Stone KD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10225037 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature