Study finds gaps in opioid use disorder treatment during COVID shutdowns
In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, visits to the doctor declined dramatically. One group of patients that appears to have weathered this trend are those who were already being treated for opioid use disorder. With an increase in telehealth visits, these patients continued to see doctors and get prescription refills at a relatively stable rate, according to a new study led by researchers at Harvard Medical School published Dec. 15 in
JAMA.
Still, the researchers note, their analysis found significantly fewer people beginning new courses of medicine to treat opioid use disorder in 2020, compared with the same three-month period in 2019, suggesting that some of those who needed to initiate medication treatment did not do so. Another alarming finding was that there was less urine testing across all patients established and new alike during the early months of the pandemic.
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In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, visits to the doctor declined dramatically. One group of patients that appears to have weathered this trend are those who were already being treated for opioid use disorder. With an increase in telehealth visits, these patients continued to see doctors and get prescription refills at a relatively stable rate, according to a new study led by researchers at Harvard Medical School published Dec. 15 in
JAMA.
Still, the researchers note, their analysis found significantly fewer people beginning new courses of medicine to treat opioid use disorder in 2020, compared with the same three-month period in 2019, suggesting that some of those who needed to initiate medication treatment did not do so. Another alarming finding was that there was less urine testing across all patients established and new alike during the early months of the pandemic.
This article is part of Harvard Medical School’s
of medicine, biomedical research, medical education and policy related to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and the disease COVID-19.
In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, visits to the doctor declined dramatically. One group of patients that appears to have weathered this trend are those who were already being treated for opioid use disorder. With an increase in telehealth visits, these patients continued to see doctors and get prescription refills at a relatively stable rate, according to a new study led by researchers at Harvard Medical School published Dec. 15 in
Still, the researchers note, their analysis found significantly fewer people beginning new courses of medicine to treat opioid use disorder in 2020, compared with the same three-month period in 2019, suggesting that some of those who needed to initiate medication treatment did not do so. Another alarming finding was that there was less urine testing across all pati
SOUTH YARMOUTH A man suffered possible life-threatening injuries Friday morning when the dump truck he was driving went off a Route 6 overpass and landed on the railroad tracks below.
State police said the truck was reported stolen by a local pool company. Police said the 36-year-old West Yarmouth man who was driving the vehicle likely faces theft and traffic-related charges.
At about 6 a.m., rescuers responded to the area near Exit 8 on the westbound side of the highway after the medium-sized truck belonging to the pool company crashed, Yarmouth fire Chief Philip Simonian said.
The remote location of the crash made getting to the truck difficult.
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