Shared Medical Appointments for Substance Use Disorders: A Systematic Review

Area of Science:

• Addiction Medicine
• Health Services Research
• Public Health

Background:

• Shared medical appointments (SMAs) combine group and individual care for substance use disorders (SUDs).
• SMAs aim to enhance access, engagement, and care coordination in SUD treatment.
• Systematic synthesis of SMA use, outcomes, and implementation in SUD care is lacking.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review the literature on shared medical appointments for adults with substance use disorders.
• To synthesize evidence on treatment engagement, retention, substance use, mental health, and implementation characteristics of SMAs in SUD care.

Main Methods:

• Systematic review of randomized controlled trials, observational studies, and qualitative studies.
• Searches conducted across major biomedical and psychological databases (MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, Scopus, Cochrane Central) through September 2025.
• Descriptive synthesis of findings, with quality assessment of included studies.

Main Results:

• Fourteen studies involving ~578 participants were included, primarily focusing on opioid use disorder.
• Median 6-month treatment retention was 72.9%; some studies reported reduced substance use and improved mental health outcomes.
• Qualitative data indicated high patient satisfaction, peer support, and accountability; implementation was feasible across settings but heterogeneous.

Conclusions:

• Shared medical appointments are feasible and acceptable for addiction treatment, potentially improving retention and patient experience.
• Current evidence is largely observational and heterogeneous.
• Rigorous comparative studies are necessary to establish definitive effectiveness and refine implementation strategies for SMAs in SUD care.