Opioid Use Disorder Treatment During COVID-19: Challenges and Opportunities
Year: 2021 | Competency/Strategic Skill: Program Planning | Priority Topic: Opioid Abuse | Setting: Online | Format: On-Demand | Sponsor: Emory University/Central Office
Overview:
This is a 90-minute recording of a live webinar held on April 28, 2021. This webinar is co-sponsored by the Injury Prevention Research Center at Emory.
The epidemic of opioid use and related harms has been exacerbated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Mitigation strategies for COVID-19 have led to disruption in the delivery of healthcare, increased social isolation, and rapid release of individuals from jails and prisons- all of which may increase the risk of overdose. Gaps in the continuum of care including access to mortality-reducing medication treatment for opioid use disorder have become more evident. In response, the federal government has made significant changes intended to provide more flexibility in how and where care is delivered for both methadone and buprenorphine treatment. Providers have welcomed these changes, and we will discuss several of these practice changes including how to utilize telemedicine and new long-acting injectable formulations to initiate and help retain patients in care.