Awareness, predictors and outcomes of drug alerts among people who access harm reduction services in British Columbia, Canada: findings from a 2021 cross-sectional survey
Objectives To assess the awareness and predictors of seeing/hearing a drug alert in British Columbia (BC) and subsequent drug use behaviour after seeing/hearing an alert.Methods This study analysed the 2021 BC harm reduction client survey (HRCS)—a cross-sectional self-reported survey administered at...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
BMJ Publishing Group
2023-05-01
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| Series: | BMJ Open |
| Online Access: | https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/13/5/e071379.full |
| _version_ | 1797830088066072576 |
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| author | Jane A Buxton Kurt Lock Brittany Graham Kerolos Daowd Max Ferguson Lisa Liu Jackson Loyal Jessica Lamb Jenny McDougall |
| author_facet | Jane A Buxton Kurt Lock Brittany Graham Kerolos Daowd Max Ferguson Lisa Liu Jackson Loyal Jessica Lamb Jenny McDougall |
| author_sort | Jane A Buxton |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Objectives To assess the awareness and predictors of seeing/hearing a drug alert in British Columbia (BC) and subsequent drug use behaviour after seeing/hearing an alert.Methods This study analysed the 2021 BC harm reduction client survey (HRCS)—a cross-sectional self-reported survey administered at harm reduction sites throughout the province and completed by participants using the services.Results In total, n=537 respondents participated and n=482 (89.8%) responded to the question asking if they saw/heard a drug alert. Of those, n=300 (62.2%) stated that they saw/heard a drug alert and almost half reported hearing from a friend or peer network; the majority (67.4%) reported altering their drug use behaviour to be safer after seeing/hearing a drug alert. The proportion of individuals who saw/heard a drug alert increased with each ascending age category. Among health authorities, there were significant differences in the odds of seeing/hearing an alert. In the past 6 months, the odds of participants who attended harm reduction sites a few times per month seeing/hearing an alert were 2.73 (95% CI: 1.17 to 6.52) times the odds of those who did not. Those who attended more frequently were less likely to report seeing/hearing a drug alert. The odds of those who witnessed an opioid-related overdose in the past 6 months seeing/hearing an alert were 1.96 (95% CI: 0.86 to 4.50) times the odds of those who had not.Conclusion We found that drug alerts were mostly disseminated through communication with friends or peers and that most participants altered their drug use behaviour after seeing/hearing a drug alert. Therefore, drug alerts can play a role in reducing harms from substance use and more work is needed to reach diverse populations, such as younger people, those in differing geographical locations, and those who attend harm reduction sites more frequently. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-09T13:30:33Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-3d9f074c57604223a833c63254361801 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2044-6055 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-09T13:30:33Z |
| publishDate | 2023-05-01 |
| publisher | BMJ Publishing Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMJ Open |
| spelling | doaj.art-3d9f074c57604223a833c632543618012023-05-10T02:30:06ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open2044-60552023-05-0113510.1136/bmjopen-2022-071379Awareness, predictors and outcomes of drug alerts among people who access harm reduction services in British Columbia, Canada: findings from a 2021 cross-sectional surveyJane A Buxton0Kurt Lock1Brittany Graham2Kerolos Daowd3Max Ferguson4Lisa Liu5Jackson Loyal6Jessica Lamb7Jenny McDougall8British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, Vancouver, BC, CanadaBC Centre for Disease Control, Vancouver, British Columbia, CanadaBritish Columbia Centre for Disease Control, Vancouver, British Columbia, CanadaFaculty of Medicine, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, CanadaHarm Reduction, BC Centre for Disease Control, Vancouver, British Columbia, CanadaHarm Reduction, BC Centre for Disease Control, Vancouver, British Columbia, CanadaHarm Reduction, BC Centre for Disease Control, Vancouver, British Columbia, CanadaHarm Reduction, BC Centre for Disease Control, Vancouver, British Columbia, CanadaHarm Reduction, BC Centre for Disease Control, Vancouver, British Columbia, CanadaObjectives To assess the awareness and predictors of seeing/hearing a drug alert in British Columbia (BC) and subsequent drug use behaviour after seeing/hearing an alert.Methods This study analysed the 2021 BC harm reduction client survey (HRCS)—a cross-sectional self-reported survey administered at harm reduction sites throughout the province and completed by participants using the services.Results In total, n=537 respondents participated and n=482 (89.8%) responded to the question asking if they saw/heard a drug alert. Of those, n=300 (62.2%) stated that they saw/heard a drug alert and almost half reported hearing from a friend or peer network; the majority (67.4%) reported altering their drug use behaviour to be safer after seeing/hearing a drug alert. The proportion of individuals who saw/heard a drug alert increased with each ascending age category. Among health authorities, there were significant differences in the odds of seeing/hearing an alert. In the past 6 months, the odds of participants who attended harm reduction sites a few times per month seeing/hearing an alert were 2.73 (95% CI: 1.17 to 6.52) times the odds of those who did not. Those who attended more frequently were less likely to report seeing/hearing a drug alert. The odds of those who witnessed an opioid-related overdose in the past 6 months seeing/hearing an alert were 1.96 (95% CI: 0.86 to 4.50) times the odds of those who had not.Conclusion We found that drug alerts were mostly disseminated through communication with friends or peers and that most participants altered their drug use behaviour after seeing/hearing a drug alert. Therefore, drug alerts can play a role in reducing harms from substance use and more work is needed to reach diverse populations, such as younger people, those in differing geographical locations, and those who attend harm reduction sites more frequently.https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/13/5/e071379.full |
| spellingShingle | Jane A Buxton Kurt Lock Brittany Graham Kerolos Daowd Max Ferguson Lisa Liu Jackson Loyal Jessica Lamb Jenny McDougall Awareness, predictors and outcomes of drug alerts among people who access harm reduction services in British Columbia, Canada: findings from a 2021 cross-sectional survey BMJ Open |
| title | Awareness, predictors and outcomes of drug alerts among people who access harm reduction services in British Columbia, Canada: findings from a 2021 cross-sectional survey |
| title_full | Awareness, predictors and outcomes of drug alerts among people who access harm reduction services in British Columbia, Canada: findings from a 2021 cross-sectional survey |
| title_fullStr | Awareness, predictors and outcomes of drug alerts among people who access harm reduction services in British Columbia, Canada: findings from a 2021 cross-sectional survey |
| title_full_unstemmed | Awareness, predictors and outcomes of drug alerts among people who access harm reduction services in British Columbia, Canada: findings from a 2021 cross-sectional survey |
| title_short | Awareness, predictors and outcomes of drug alerts among people who access harm reduction services in British Columbia, Canada: findings from a 2021 cross-sectional survey |
| title_sort | awareness predictors and outcomes of drug alerts among people who access harm reduction services in british columbia canada findings from a 2021 cross sectional survey |
| url | https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/13/5/e071379.full |
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