COVID-19 in Homeless Populations: Unique Challenges and Opportunities

Conway, Brian; Truong, David; Wuerth, Kelli

doi:10.2217/fvl-2020-0156

Cited by 29 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…Similar to NSP, outreach and home delivery have been recommended for OST in a pandemic-type situation [15,25]. Flexibility for services to relax supervision and increase take home doses has also been suggested [8,12,13,15,21]. Many authors state that these changes should be based on the stability of the patient, with highest risk patients still able to access the clinic [9,16,[26][27][28].…”

Section: Ostmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rapid evidence review of harm reduction interventions and messaging for people who inject drugs during pandemic events: implications for the ongoing COVID-19 response

et al. 2020

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Background People who inject drugs are at increased health risk in a pandemic due to their greater susceptibility to severe disease and as a consequence of the restrictions put in place to halt the spread of infection. Harm reduction (HR) services, which aim to reduce the negative effects of drug use on health, are likely to be diminished in a pandemic. However, innovative HR interventions and messaging may also develop in response to such a crisis. It is vital to understand the most effective ways to deliver HR in pandemic situations so that guidance can be provided for current and future disruptions to service provision. Methods A rapid evidence review was conducted with the aim of exploring what HR interventions and messaging are most effective during a pandemic-type situation. Ten health databases were systematically searched using terms relevant to the research aim. A search was also made of grey literature, including a targeted search of HR messaging from key national and service provider websites. Results In the initial search, 121 pieces of evidence were identified which, after screening and de-duplication, resulted in 60 for inclusion. The included evidence consists mainly of non-peer reviewed, pre-publication or expert opinion pieces. The rapid findings suggest that HR services should be deemed essential during a pandemic, with staff supported to work safely and social distancing adaptations implemented. Services should be encouraged to operate more flexibly; for instance, in deciding the amounts of take-home supplies of injecting equipment and medications. The evidence on HR communication was very limited but key messages on infection control, uncertain drug supply and accessing services were identified. Conclusions This rapid evidence review identifies implications for national policy makers, commissioners and HR service providers. A person-centred rather than disease-centred approach to HR delivered by collaborating partners, as well as prioritizing tailored HR messaging, is recommended. Further research evaluating the delivery of HR services and messaging, particularly focusing on health inequalities, is urgently needed.

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Section: Ostmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rapid evidence review of harm reduction interventions and messaging for people who inject drugs during pandemic events: implications for the ongoing COVID-19 response

et al. 2020

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“…So, there is a need to apply quarantine measures for homeless people, presuming that their identification and habitat premises are met. Obeying the general public measures of quarantine, shelters, and facilities has already diminished their capacity to meet the social distancing rule since recent data sustain the presence of asymptomatically ill patients in homeless shelters and infected personnel (Conway et al, 2020).…”

Section: Neglected Special Categories: the Unsolved Issues Of Homelesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pandemic lockdown, healthcare policies and human rights: integrating opposed views on COVID-19 public health mitigation measures

Burlacu

Criṣan-Dabija

Covic

et al. 2020

Rev. Cardiovasc. Med.

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The issue of the COVID-19 pandemic occupies the agenda of the whole world. The pivot of this pandemic is a crucial element that has become almost as important as the virus itself, namely the lockdown. Although, the rationale for lockdown is well-sustained by strong epidemiological arguments, exploring the ‘other’ unwanted consequences of the contemporary COVID-19 pandemic is mandatory for coagulating a robust agreed position against the numerous problems generated by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Starting from the rationale of the lockdown, in this paper we explored and exposed the other consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic measures such as the use or abuse of human rights and freedom restrictions, economic issues, marginalized groups and eclipse of all other diseases. Our scientific attempt is to coagulate a stable position and integrate current opposing views by advancing the idea that rather than applying the uniform lockdown policy, one could recommend instead an improved model targeting more strict and more prolonged lockdowns to vulnerable risk/age groups while enabling less stringent measures for the lower-risk groups, minimizing both economic losses and deaths. Rigorous (and also governed by freedom) debating may be able to synchronize the opposed perspectives between those advocating an extreme lockdown (e.g., most of the epidemiologists and health experts), and those criticizing all restrictive measures (e.g., economists and human rights experts). Confronting the multiple facets of the public health mitigation measures is the only way to avoid contributing to history with yet another failure, as seen in other past epidemics.

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“…Continued access to blood borne virus (BBV) testing and treatment for PWID is vital to identify cases and reduce transmission (13); innovative ways to deliver this, such as rapid testing, need to be identi ed (14).…”

Section: Overview Of Included Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rapid Evidence Review of Harm Reduction Interventions and Messaging for People Who Inject Drugs During Pandemic Events: Implications for the On-Going COVID-19 Response

Wilkinson

Hines

Holland

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Background People who inject drugs (PWID) are at increased health risk in a pandemic due to their greater susceptibility to severe disease and as a consequence of the restrictions put in place to halt the spread of infection. Harm reduction (HR) services, which aim to reduce the negative effects of drug use on health, are likely to be diminished in a pandemic. However, innovative HR interventions and messaging may also develop in response to such a crisis. It is vital to understand the most effective ways to deliver HR in pandemic situations so that guidance can be provided for current and future disruptions to service provision. Methods A rapid evidence review was conducted with the aim of exploring what HR interventions and messaging are most effective during a pandemic type situation. Ten health databases were systematically searched using terms relevant to the research aim. A search was also made of grey literature, including a targeted search of HR messaging from key national and service provider websites. Results In the initial search, 121 pieces of evidence were identified which, after screening and de-duplication, resulted in 60 for inclusion. The included evidence consists mainly of non-peer reviewed, pre-publication or expert opinion pieces. The rapid findings suggest that HR services should be deemed essential during a pandemic, with staff supported to work safely and social distancing adaptations implemented. Services should be encouraged to operate more flexibly; for instance, in deciding the amounts of take-home supplies of injecting equipment and medications. The evidence on HR communication was very limited but key messages on infection control, uncertain drug supply and accessing services were identified.Conclusions This rapid evidence review identifies implications for national policy makers, commissioners and HR service providers. A person-centred rather than disease-centred approach to HR delivered by collaborating partners, as well as prioritizing tailored HR messaging, is recommended. Further research evaluating the delivery of HR services and messaging, particularly focusing on health inequalities, is urgently needed.

show abstract

COVID-19 in Homeless Populations: Unique Challenges and Opportunities

Cited by 29 publications

References 4 publications

Rapid evidence review of harm reduction interventions and messaging for people who inject drugs during pandemic events: implications for the ongoing COVID-19 response

Rapid evidence review of harm reduction interventions and messaging for people who inject drugs during pandemic events: implications for the ongoing COVID-19 response

Pandemic lockdown, healthcare policies and human rights: integrating opposed views on COVID-19 public health mitigation measures

Rapid Evidence Review of Harm Reduction Interventions and Messaging for People Who Inject Drugs During Pandemic Events: Implications for the On-Going COVID-19 Response

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