Behaviours and Health Risks Program, Burnet Institute, Melbourne, Australia.
School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.
Drug Alcohol Rev. 2018 May;37(4):472-479. doi: 10.1111/dar.12680. Epub 2018 Feb 22.
Take-home naloxone (THN) programs have been operating in Australia since 2012 in a variety of settings. We examine whether THN programs were effective in increasing knowledge about opioid overdose and appropriate responses in program participants.
Data were obtained from pre- and post-training questionnaires administered as part of the early evaluations of THN naloxone programs operated in Sydney (n = 67), Melbourne (n = 280), Perth (n = 153) and Canberra (n = 183). Pooled data from comparable items, analysed in the domains specified in previously-developed evaluation scales, were compared using repeated-measures analysis of variance and random effects logistic regression. Results pre- and post-training were compared as well as results across sites.
High levels of knowledge about overdose risks and signs and appropriate actions to take were observed at baseline and this generally improved over time. No substantial differences were identified across cities. Knowledge also increased with participant age but the improvements over time were similar in each age group. There were small differences by participant gender with knowledge generally higher among females.
THN programs are effective in improving knowledge related to overdose response. Major improvements in knowledge were limited to overdose recognition and effect of naloxone suggesting that education may best be focused on overdose signs and the use of naloxone among populations accessed through these programs. A focus on younger people also appears warranted. Further work is needed to understand the impact of training and knowledge on actual behaviours around overdose events.
自 2012 年以来，澳大利亚一直在各种环境中开展带离纳洛酮（THN）计划。我们研究了 THN 计划是否能有效提高计划参与者对阿片类药物过量和适当反应的知识。
数据来自悉尼（n=67）、墨尔本（n=280）、珀斯（n=153）和堪培拉（n=183）开展的 THN 纳洛酮计划早期评估中作为一部分进行的培训前和培训后问卷调查。使用重复测量方差分析和随机效应逻辑回归，比较在以前开发的评估量表中指定的领域中分析的类似项目的汇总数据。比较了培训前后的结果以及不同地点的结果。
在基线时观察到对过量风险和迹象以及应采取的适当行动的高度了解，并且随着时间的推移，这通常会有所提高。各个城市之间没有发现明显的差异。知识也随着参与者年龄的增长而增加，但每个年龄组的时间改善情况相似。参与者的性别存在细微差异，女性的知识通常更高。
THN 计划在提高与过量反应相关的知识方面是有效的。知识的重大改善仅限于识别过量和纳洛酮的作用，这表明教育可能最好集中在过量迹象以及通过这些计划接触到的人群中使用纳洛酮上。关注年轻人似乎也是合理的。需要进一步的工作来了解培训和知识对实际过量事件行为的影响。
