Skip to main content

Main menu

  • About Us
    • Leadership
    • Our Team
    • Vision, Mission and Values
    • Health and Economic Impact
    • Research Impact Video
    • Strategic Plan
  • Our Research
    • Research Focus
      • Brain Health
      • Cancer
      • Digital Health and Artificial Intelligence
      • Heart Health
      • Healthy Aging and Mobility
      • Immune System
      • Injury and Rehabilitation
      • Lung Health
      • Mental Health and Substance Use
    • Research Centres and Programs
      • BC Centre on Substance Use
      • Centre for Aging SMART
      • Centre for Cardiovascular Innovation
      • Centre for Clinical Epidemiology and Evaluation
      • Centre for Lung Health
      • Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health
      • Immunity and Infection Research Centre
      • International Collaboration On Repair Discoveries
      • M. H. Mohseni Institute of Urologic Sciences
      • Ovarian Cancer Research Centre
      • Community Research Program
      • Emergency Medicine Research Program
      • Hematology Research Program
      • Skin Research Program
      • Other Research Focus Areas
    • News and Stories
    • Researcher Directory
    • Events and Workshops
  • Research Services
    • New to VCHRI
      • Working at VCHRI
      • Regulations and Training
      • Membership with VCHRI
      • Learning and Development
    • Starting Your Project
      • Research Facilitation
      • Awards and Funding
      • Grant Management
      • Operational Approval
      • CST Cerner
    • Developing Your Project
      • Clinical Trials Administration
      • Clinical Research Unit
      • Research Privacy
      • Financial Policies and Procedures
    • Additional Support
      • Indigenous Health Research Unit
      • VCH-VCHRI AI Hub
      • Communications and Media Relations
      • Study Recruitment Support
      • Innovation and Industry Partnership
    • Internal Awards
    • Clinical Research
    • Indigenous Research
  • Participate in Research
    • Reasons to Participate
    • Participant Stories
    • Find a Study
    • Recruitment Support

User menu

  • Log in

Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. Our Research
  3. News and Stories
  4. Long-term follow-ups improve health outcomes for people with substance use disorders

Long-term follow-ups improve health outcomes for people with substance use disorders

Stories Apr 17, 2024 4 minutes

A new program for people with opioid use disorder resulted in increased housing and substance use care retention.

A novel longitudinal outreach program for people with opioid use disorder (OUD), set into motion in the emergency department at Vancouver General Hospital, was associated with better health outcomes. Led by Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute researcher and emergency room physician, Dr. Andrew Kestler, the outreach program resulted in greater participant housing, retention in substance use care and initiation of opioid agonist therapy.

Published in Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention and Policy, the study builds on previous research findings linking the rapid transition to community care programs with better treatment retention among people with OUD. Initiated by emergency department team members, many programs involve referral to mental health and addictions teams or opioid agonist therapy (OAT), which substitutes medications, such as buprenorphine/naloxone or methadone, for opioids to reduce the harms associated with substance use disorders and support recovery.

Dr. Andrew Kestler is a regional emergency department substance use lead with Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) and a clinical professor with the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of British Columbia.

“The emergency department presents an opportunity to act by offering in-the-moment services to patients who may have experienced opioid poisoning or are managing multiple comorbidities at once, such as wounds and mental illness, as well as facing homelessness,” notes Kestler. “The emergency department encounter can open the door to connecting people with OUD to peer navigators and other resources for longer-term follow-ups.”

“The potential of toxic drug poisoning makes it imperative to maximize small windows of opportunity to connect people with OUD to community supports.”

Kestler and his team’s first-of-its-kind, year-long intensive community outreach support for people with OUD was provided by the skilled VCH Overdose Outreach Team (OOT) and integrated regular check-ins on top of the standard OOT care. Initiated in the emergency department, the program offered a mix of in-person and telephone conversations with patient-centered care options. Outreach team members facilitated well-being check-ins and offered information and connection to community supports and services, such as substance use care and housing. 

“We have a greater understanding now that simply referring to follow-up care from the emergency department is more of a barrier for people with OUD who want to explore community-based care options than, for example, accompanying them to a community-based care facility directly from the hospital.”

Long-term follow-ups resulted in greater housing and treatment retention

Eighty-four adults from the Vancouver area aged 18 years of age or older participated in the study. All had clinically confirmed OUD and were not on OAT at the time of program initiation. Sixty participants completed at least one follow-up questionnaire — provided at the one-, two-, six- and 12-month marks — with eight participants completing all four questionnaires that were part of the research team’s survey protocol. 

Researchers surveyed for participant demographic information, as well as frequency of drug use, OAT status, engagement in community care, motivation to engage in treatment, health-related quality of life, housing status and the perceived helpfulness of the outreach program. Study outcomes measures were informed by completed follow-up questionnaires, along with phone and in-person conversations between participants and OOT outreach staff members. 

“The more we make available opportunities for people to get help for substance use disorders, the better they are likely to fare in the long run.”

On average, study participants self-reported an increase in substance use care engagement, primarily in the form of clinic visits, from 22 per cent at baseline to 65 per cent at the one-month mark, 81 per cent at two months, 73 per cent at six months and 74 per cent at the one-year close of the study. Participants also went from no abstinence in illicit opioid use for a full week at baseline to nine to 15 per cent of participants reporting abstaining from opioid use for seven consecutive days.

“A goal of substance use care is to shorten the time between relapses, giving people enough breathing space to establish social supports that can facilitate their recovery.”

Forty-two per cent of participants began OAT within their first month participating in the program. After one year in the program, 56 per cent of participants were on OAT. At the outset of the program, 32 per cent of participants had fixed housing, which increased to 48 to 59 per cent at follow-up.

Kestler plans to pursue additional follow-up research with study participants to see whether longer-term program engagement can yield greater retention in substance use care and stable housing. 

“We need more information about the role of continued connections to community care supports and support networks in substance use treatment and recovery,” states Kestler. 
 

Researchers

Andrew Kestler

Related Articles

Mental health pre- and post-recreational cannabis legalization

Emergency department discussions about opioid use

Community care for complex health needs

Share:

  • Facebook
  • Linkedin
  • Twitter
  • Email

Related Research Centres/Programs

Emergency Medicine Research Program

Get the latest research headlines in your inbox

Subscribe

Recent News and Stories

Type
Announcement

Celebrating the life and distinguished career of Dr. Marcel Dvorak

May 14, 2025
Type
Stories

More equitable representation needed in Parkinson’s research

May 9, 2025 parkinsons, patient engagement, women
Type
Stories

Gamified stroke recovery improves arm function

May 8, 2025 stroke, rehabilitation
See more news

Get updates!

Join our newsletter mailing list to stay up to date on features and releases.

Subscribe

Quick Links

  • News and Stories
  • Careers
  • Events
  • Media Enquiries

Follow Us

  • LinkedIn
  • X
  • YouTube

© 2025 VCHRI. All rights reserved.

  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy