Optimizing Opioid Addiction Treatment in Correctional Centres: Learnings From Alberta, Canada

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Corrections Healthcare
• Addiction Medicine

Background:

• Opioid use disorder (OUD) presents significant challenges in correctional settings.
• Alberta's Correctional Health Services has focused on improving OUD treatment within prisons.
• Traditional OUD treatment pathways in corrections often involve lengthy wait times.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the implementation and outcomes of an innovative OUD treatment program in Alberta's correctional facilities.
• To evaluate the impact of a partnership with the Virtual Opioid Dependency Program on OUD care access.
• To assess the effectiveness of quality improvement initiatives in reducing waitlists and mortality.

Main Methods:

• Development of an opioid agonist therapy (OAT) program over ten years.
• Integration of asynchronous virtual assessments for OUD diagnosis and treatment initiation.
• Implementation of quality improvement initiatives to streamline OAT access.

Main Results:

• Elimination of waitlists for OAT initiation for eligible inmates.
• Significant reductions in drug overdose mortality within correctional centers.
• Sustained reductions in drug overdose mortality post-release for program participants.

Conclusions:

• Alberta's correctional system has successfully implemented an innovative OUD treatment program.
• Virtual care models enhance access to timely OUD diagnosis and OAT.
• Programmatic improvements have led to decreased overdose mortality in a vulnerable population.