Wettemann Courteney, Perlmutter David L, Frohe Tessa, Ryan Taylor, Williams Grover Will, Holland Nathan, Rourke Rachel, Pitcher Robert, Elswick Fockele Callan, Goh Brenda, Billingsley Germaine, van Draanen Jenna
Department of Child, Family, and Population Health Nursing, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
Research with Expert Advisors on Drug Use (READU), Seattle, WA, USA.
Harm Reduct J. 2025 Mar 28;22(1):43. doi: 10.1186/s12954-025-01193-0.
The increasing implementation of harm reduction strategies such as take-home naloxone has placed people who use drugs (PWUD) in the position of overdose responders during overdose events, but the perspectives of PWUD are underrepresented in public health policy and practice concerning overdose response. We conducted this study to examine PWUD's perspectives on first response services for overdose and to learn how PWUD can be supported more effectively when they respond to overdoses.
The Research with Expert Advisors on Drug Use (READU) team, a community-based research team that includes academically trained researchers and people with lived and living experience conducted 13 semistructured interviews with PWUD in King County. The data were analyzed via thematic analysis. The Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) was used to guide the development of the interview protocol and as a framework for qualitative codebook development.
Participants were asked to describe their experiences with EMS, including police, during overdose response. Most had reversed an overdose themselves and demonstrated commitment to their role as overdose responders. Participants had mixed feelings about EMS involvement in overdose response, citing concerns about stigma and coercion. Police response was described as negatively impacting peer overdose response, with participants stating that past experiences of arrest and harassment by police during overdose response contributed to their reluctance to call 911 during an overdose.
The findings from this study demonstrate the important role of PWUD in overdose response and suggest that improving interactions between EMS and PWUD could positively impact future responses, including increasing PWUD's willingness to call 911 during overdose events.
诸如发放纳洛酮带回家等减少伤害策略的实施日益增加，使得吸毒者在过量用药事件中处于过量用药急救者的位置，但在关于过量用药应对的公共卫生政策和实践中，吸毒者的观点却未得到充分体现。我们开展这项研究，以考察吸毒者对过量用药急救服务的看法，并了解在吸毒者应对过量用药情况时如何能更有效地支持他们。
吸毒问题专家顾问研究（READU）团队是一个基于社区的研究团队，由受过学术训练的研究人员以及有实际吸毒经历的人组成，该团队对金县的吸毒者进行了13次半结构化访谈。通过主题分析对数据进行了分析。实施研究综合框架（CFIR）被用于指导访谈方案的制定，并作为定性编码手册制定的框架。
参与者被要求描述他们在过量用药应对过程中与包括警察在内的紧急医疗服务（EMS）的经历。大多数人曾自行逆转过量用药情况，并表明了他们作为过量用药急救者的职责。参与者对EMS参与过量用药应对有着复杂的感受，提到了对污名化和强制手段的担忧。警察的反应被描述为对同伴过量用药应对产生负面影响，参与者表示过去在过量用药应对期间被警察逮捕和骚扰的经历导致他们在过量用药时不愿拨打911。
本研究结果表明吸毒者在过量用药应对中发挥着重要作用，并表明改善EMS与吸毒者之间的互动可能会对未来的应对产生积极影响，包括提高吸毒者在过量用药事件中拨打911的意愿。
