Long acting injectable buprenorphine: Perspectives from service-users, staff and stakeholders

Long-acting injectable buprenorphine (LAIB) is a relatively novel pharmacological treatment for people with opioid dependence. Despite growing qualitative evidence, there is limited research on practitioner insights, and effectiveness of LAIB in a community setting.

Thirteen service-users (11 currently prescribed LAIB), 6 practitioners, and 4 stakeholders (public health workers) took part in semi-structured interviews (n = 23) to glean their perspectives on LAIB. They were recruited through a community drug treatment service in the NW of England. The interview schedule was informed by previous literature and co-produced with a peer worker with lived experience of drug recovery treatment. Transcripts were analysed thematically by the research team.

Four major themes were identified from the interviews: A change of focus; challenges; wrap-around support; and target groups.

Our findings support existing evidence around the individual benefits to service-users such as changes to lifestyle and reduction of stigma, as well as challenges such as the need for wrap-around support and accessible information. We found that commissioning considerations such as geographical inequalities and the need for multi-service collaboration are important in this setting.

LAIB treatment works well for many people in a community context that offers significant wrap-around support to service-users. The novelty of this research lies in bringing together the views of practitioners and stakeholders as well as treatment/service beneficiaries in evaluating the introduction of LAIB in a community service.