Horton M, McDonald R, Green TC, Nielsen S, Strang J, Degenhardt L, Larney S. Int. J. Drug Policy 2017; 46: 7-16.
Affiliation
National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Center for Prisoner Health and Human Rights, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA. Electronic address: s.larney@unsw.edu.au.
BACKGROUND: People released from correctional settings are at an elevated risk of opioid overdose death in the weeks immediately following release. However, it is not well understood how this population, as a particularly high-risk group, is included in, and benefits from take-home naloxone (THN) programs. The objective of this review is to map research into THN for people released from correctional settings in order to identify further research needs.
METHOD: We searched electronic databases, grey literature, and conference abstracts for reports on THN for people in or released from correctional settings. Studies were categorised into themes defined by the study's aims and focus.
RESULTS from each study were summarised by theme.
RESULTS: We identified 19 studies reporting on THN programs for people released from correctional settings. Studies have examined attitudes towards naloxone among people in custody or recently released from custody (theme 1), and among non-prisoner stakeholders such as prison staff (theme 2). Evaluations and interventional studies (theme 3) have examined process indicators and approaches to naloxone training, including for contacts of prisoners, but there are challenges in assessing health outcomes of THN in the correctional context. Case reports suggest that training in correctional settings translates to action post-release (theme 4).
CONCLUSION: The feasibility of THN in the context of release from a correctional setting has been established, but there is a need for rigorous research into health outcomes and program implementation. This is an emerging field of study and ongoing assessment of the state of the literature and research needs is recommended.