Characteristics and Risk of Adverse Mental Health Events Amongst Users of the National Overdose Response Service...

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Mental Health Services
• Substance Use Disorders

Background:

• The National Overdose Response Service (NORS) is a Canadian hotline designed to prevent overdose deaths.
• NORS has unexpectedly received a significant number of mental health-related calls, including adverse mental health events.
• Understanding these occurrences is crucial for optimizing harm reduction strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the nature of mental health occurrences and adverse mental health events received by NORS.
• To identify caller characteristics that predict adverse mental health outcomes.
• To assess the utility of overdose prevention hotlines in addressing mental health crises.

Main Methods:

• Descriptive analysis of the NORS call dataset.
• Correlative statistics were used to identify predictive factors for adverse mental health events.
• Analysis included caller demographics, substance use patterns, and call history.

Main Results:

• NORS received 2518 mental health calls, with 28 (1.1%) classified as adverse events.
• Factors increasing the odds of adverse mental health events included male gender, rural location, poly-substance use, and a history of overdosing.
• Factors decreasing the odds included being from Quebec, using non-standard consumption routes, and call frequency between 50-99 times.

Conclusions:

• Overdose prevention hotlines can serve a dual purpose in supporting individuals experiencing mental health crises.
• These findings support the expansion of harm reduction services to include mental health support.
• Integrating mental health and substance use disorder services can improve outcomes for vulnerable populations.