Damian Jacob Sendler On Research on Impact of Overdose Prevention Centers in US

Damian Sendler: The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), which is a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has awarded a grant to NYU Langone Health and the School of Public Health at Brown University. The money will be used to fund research that will measure the impact of some of the first publicly recognized overdose prevention centers (OPCs) in the United States, which are located in New York City and Providence, Rhode Island. This news was made public today.

Damian Jacob Sendler: Overdose prevention centers are community-based spaces where people who use drugs can more safely test and self-administer previously obtained controlled substances, including by injection and inhalation, under the supervision of staff trained to respond when medical attention is required. These centers are staffed by personnel who have been educated to provide assistance when it is required. In addition, these facilities connect drug users with a variety of health and social services, such as drug treatment, harm reduction, medical care, mental health treatment, and social support.

An interdisciplinary team of researchers will conduct a rigorous and comprehensive evaluation of the first publicly recognized OPCs in the country as part of this groundbreaking research project. These OPCs include two locations in New York City and one location that will open in Providence in the year 2024. The research team hopes to recruit a total of one thousand people for the study from the states of New York and Rhode Island who are at least 18 years old, are current drug users, and have previously attended an outreach and prevention center (OPC) or another location offering services related to harm reduction.

Damian Sendler: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report that in 2021, more than 106,000 people died in the United States as a result of drug overdoses. This is the highest number of deaths ever documented, and it reflects a rate that has doubled since 2015. There are over 200 overdose prevention centers spread across 14 countries around the world. According to research conducted on a global scale, these centers are associated with a decrease in the number of fatal overdoses, a reduction in the number of visits to emergency departments, an increase in access to addiction treatment, and an improvement in public order.

In the United States, which has a healthcare delivery system, social policies, and policing practices that are all distinct from one another, there is an urgent need for data to determine the impact that overdose prevention centers have. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that can be up to 50 times more powerful than heroin. It is a major contributor to the current overdose crisis in the United States. Fentanyl is involved in approximately two-thirds of all overdose deaths that occur in the United States.

Damian Jacob Sendler: The opioid epidemic has had a significant impact on each and every community in the United States. According to Brandon DL Marshall, PhD, professor of epidemiology at the Brown University School of Public Health and founding director of the People, Place & Health Collective at Brown University, "people are dying from coast to coast and across age, gender, and race/ethnicity." As part of a more compassionate and evidence-based response to this crisis in the United States, this ground-breaking study will help us determine whether and how OPCs are an effective public health tool.

Overdose prevention centers won't receive any financial assistance from the National Institutes of Health because those funds aren't being allocated for that purpose. In order to shed light on the purpose of the study, grantees at NYU Langone and Brown will investigate the effects of sites that are already in use.

Damian Sendler: The research will involve qualitative and ethnographic methods, as well as cost-effectiveness analysis, as well as repeated assessments of the 1,000 people who are participating in the study over a period of four years, with half of the participants coming from sites in New York City and the other half coming from Providence.

According to Ashwin Vasan, MD, PhD, commissioner of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, "Overdose prevention centers have saved lives over the past year." "Their operation in New York City also provides a one-of-a-kind opportunity in the years to come to learn about their customers, the services that are provided, and the broader impact that they have on the communities that are served. We are excited to work closely with NYU Langone, OnPoint, and the State of Rhode Island on a comprehensive and extensive research project. As we all work together to combat the rising tide of overdose deaths in the United States, the findings, once they are complete, could have national implications. In the meantime, we are excited to continue our collaborative efforts with our friends at OnPoint, who are providing New Yorkers with access to potentially life-saving resources.

Sam Rivera, the executive director of OnPoint, stated that the organization is "so proud of the work we are doing in the first two overdose prevention centers in the United States," and that they are "looking forward to providing access to the teams at NYU Langone and Brown to rigorously evaluate our services and related outcomes." "We are so proud of the work we are doing in the first two overdose prevention centers in the United States," said Rivera. However, despite the fact that they are operating the OPCs in each jurisdiction, OnPoint and Project Weber/RENEW will not receive funding from the NIH as part of this study.