Perceptions on the Opioid Epidemic: A Qualitative Study

Background: Opioid use disorder (OUD) and resultant opioid overdoses have amplified over the last 20 years, despite efforts to identify best practices for treatment. Little research has focused on the disconnect between individuals with OUD and their healthcare providers. Hypothesis: We hypothesize that discrepancies exist between individuals with OUD and their healthcare providers with respect to perceptions of and experiences with medical care, the opioid antidote naloxone, and current treatment paradigms. Highlighting these discrepancies will inform future healthcare models. Methods: Using electronic surveys and semi-structured interviews, we will collect qualitative data from both individuals with OUD and emergency providers to assess knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions towards OUD, and to identify perceived barriers and facilitators to OUD treatment. A sampling methodology geared toward hidden populations, respondent driven sampling (RDS), will be used to recruit individuals with OUD. The initial participants will be enrolled from the emergency department (seeds) and will be asked to recruit three individuals in their social network from the community (waves). Results: Recruitment to date has focused on individuals with OUD: we have enrolled six seeds. Recruitment of additional waves by the seeds has been a challenge; there has only been one response out of a total of fifteen possible referrals. Community Engagement: We seek to enhance our emergency department-based seed recruitment strategy by expanding into the Worcester community. We are specifically looking to partner with community based-harm reduction agencies and other groups that engage individuals with active or past OUD