Outcomes of Ottawa, Canada's Managed Opioid Program (MOP) where supervised injectable hydromorphone was paired with assisted housing

• Published in: The International journal of drug policy 2021-12, Vol.98, p.103400, Article 103400
• Main Authors: Harris, Miriam TH, Seliga, Rebecca K, Fairbairn, Nadia, Nolan, Seonaid, Walley, Alexander Y, Weinstein, Zoe M, Turnbull, Jeffery
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Alcohol related disorders; Alcohol use; Alcoholism; Analgesics, Opioid - therapeutic use; Attrition; Canada; Clinical outcomes; Disorders; Dosage; Drug abuse; Drug policy; Enrollments; Female; Health behavior; Health services; Health status; Heroin - therapeutic use; Homeless people; Homelessness; Housing; Housing first; Humans; Hydromorphone; Hydromorphone - therapeutic use; Injectable opioid agonist treatment; Inner city; Mental disorders; Morphine; Narcotics; Opiate; Opioid use disorder; Opioid-Related Disorders - drug therapy; Opioids; Overdoses; Patient-centered care; Retention; Retrospective Studies; Social well being; Statistics; Substance abuse; Substance use disorder; Survival analysis; Well being
• ISSN: 0955-3959; 1873-4758; 1873-4758
• DOI: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2021.103400

•The managed opioid program paired injectable hydromorphone with housing.•77% of the participants remained in treatment at one-year.•58% had no overdoses and at one-year 45% stopped non-prescribed opioid use.•42% reconnected with estranged family and 31% started a vocational program.•Future studies that pair housing with injectable opioid agonist treatment are needed. The Ottawa Inner City Health's Managed Opioid Program is the first, to our knowledge, to pair injectable opioid agonist hydromorphone treatment with assisted housing for people experiencing homelessness with severe opioid use disorder (OUD) and injection drug use. We aimed to describe this program and evaluate retention, health, and social wellbeing outcomes. We retrospectively assessed the first cohort of clients enrolled in the Managed Opioid Program between August 2017–2018. The primary outcome was retention at 12 months. Secondary outcomes included injectable and oral opioid dose titration, non-prescribed opioid use, overdoses, connection with behavioural health services, and social well-being. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize baseline demographics and secondary outcomes. Actuarial survival analysis was used to assess retention among participants. The study sample included 26 participants: median age was 36 years, 14 were female, 22 were White, eight had alcohol use disorders, 25 had stimulant use disorders, and all had a history of concurrent psychiatric illness. Retention at 12 months was 77% (95% CI 62–95). Throughout the first-year participants’ opioid treatment doses increased. The median daily dose of injectable hydromorphone was 36 mg [17–54 mg] and 156 mg [108–188 mg] at enrollment and one year respectively. The median daily dose of oral opioid treatment was 120-milligram morphine equivalents [83–180 mg morphine equivalents] and 330-milligram morphine equivalents [285–428 mg morphine equivalents] at enrollment and one year respectively. Over half had no overdoses and there were no deaths among participants who remained enrolled. At one year, 45% stopped non-prescribed opioid use, 96% connected to behavioral health services, 73% reconnected with estranged families, and 31% started work or vocational programs. Individuals with severe OUD engaged in injectable hydromorphone treatment and housing showed high retention in care and substantive improvements in patient-centered health and social well-being outcomes.