Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on treatment seeking in opioid users: A retrospective comparative study

IF 0.2 Q4 PSYCHIATRY
Mini Sharma, Dinesh Kataria, Nitin B. Raut, O. Ramesh, Sajjadur Rehman, B. Gracy
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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background: The planet has been hit by the novel coronavirus since December 2019, which has not only affected the day-to-day activities but has also affected the health-seeking approach of the general population. The reports from the National Institute on Drug Abuse survey hint toward a rise in opioid use in the states. Even in India, the utilization of health services, especially the outpatient department (OPD) and opioid substitution clinics have been affected due to the impact of COVID-19 and subsequent national and regional lockdowns. The Indian studies reflect upon the experience and measures to continue the treatment facilities in substance users, yet none are available to reflect upon the impact of COVID-19 on the pattern of opioid use or functionality of OPD services. Objective: The objective of this study is to study the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on treatment seeking among opioid users from OPD-based opioid treatment centers: a retrospective study. Methodology: A retrospective study was done in an OPD-based opioid treatment center of a tertiary care hospital to analyze the impact of COVID-19 on treatment-seeking opioid users by comparing the data of pre-COVID-19 (April 2019–March 2020) and during COVID-19 (April 2020–March 2021) OPD visits by opioid users. The OPD visits data were collected, including the number of visits, the total number of buprenorphine tablets dispensed, and the dose of buprenorphine consumed per month. The data collected were further analyzed for the descriptive and analytic statistics using the SPSS software version 23.0. Results: During the pre-COVID-19 (April 2019–March 2020) duration, there were a total of 1104 (average 92/month) OPD visits and 4818 (Average 401/month) buprenorphine tablets were dispensed; whereas during the COVID-19 year (April 2020–March 2021), it was 980 (average 81.66/month) visits and 5174 (431/month) tablets. The results were further compared using the paired t-test, which was found to be statistically significant for the number of tablets dispensed, whereas not statistically significant for the number of OPD visits and doses. Conclusion: Although the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the feasibility to seek treatment in opioid users, it has not significantly affected OPD visits for opioid treatment at our center. Although the policy changes such as Indian Psychiatry Society (IPS) interim guidelines for opioid substitution therapy have been beneficial to facilitate the harm reduction and treatment-seeking attitude and have not affected the treatment seeking as expected due to lockdown and transportation which have been a hurdle. Further regulations on opioid treatment OPD, Tele-consultation services and mobile mental health services may be helpful to ensure continuity of treatment and harm reduction among the opioid users.
新冠肺炎大流行对阿片类药物使用者寻求治疗的影响:一项回顾性比较研究
背景:自2019年12月以来,全球遭受新型冠状病毒的袭击,不仅影响了日常活动,也影响了普通人群的就医方式。美国国家药物滥用研究所的调查报告暗示,美国阿片类药物的使用有所增加。即使在印度,由于COVID-19的影响以及随后的国家和地区封锁,卫生服务的利用,特别是门诊部和阿片类药物替代诊所的利用也受到了影响。印度的研究反映了在药物使用者中继续使用治疗设施的经验和措施,但没有研究反映2019冠状病毒病对阿片类药物使用模式或门诊服务功能的影响。目的:本研究的目的是研究COVID-19大流行对opd阿片类药物治疗中心阿片类药物使用者寻求治疗的影响:一项回顾性研究。方法:在某三级医院门诊阿片类药物治疗中心进行回顾性研究,通过比较COVID-19前(2019年4月- 2020年3月)和COVID-19期间(2020年4月- 2021年3月)阿片类药物使用者就诊的数据,分析COVID-19对寻求阿片类药物使用者的影响。收集门诊就诊数据,包括就诊次数、发放丁丙诺啡片剂总数、每月丁丙诺啡用量。采用SPSS 23.0软件对收集到的数据进行描述性统计和分析性统计。结果:2019年4月- 2020年3月,新冠肺炎前期(2019年4月- 2020年3月)共就诊1104次(平均92次/月),发放丁丙诺啡片剂4818片(平均401片/月);而在2019冠状病毒病年度(2020年4月至2021年3月),为980次(平均81.66次/月)和5174次(431次/月)。结果进一步使用配对t检验进行比较,发现分配的片剂数量具有统计学意义,而门诊就诊次数和剂量没有统计学意义。结论:虽然COVID-19大流行影响了阿片类药物使用者寻求治疗的可行性,但并未显著影响我中心阿片类药物治疗的OPD访问量。尽管诸如印度精神病学学会(IPS)阿片类药物替代疗法临时指南等政策变化有利于促进减少伤害和寻求治疗的态度,并且没有像预期的那样影响寻求治疗,因为封锁和运输一直是一个障碍。关于阿片类药物治疗的进一步条例、远程咨询服务和流动精神卫生服务可能有助于确保阿片类药物使用者治疗的连续性和减少伤害。
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来源期刊
自引率
25.00%
发文量
38
审稿时长
23 weeks
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