Patient acceptance of emergency department-initiated buprenorphine and reasons for declining

Background: Medication for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) reduces morbidity and mortality for patients with opioid use disorder (OUD). Emergency department-initiated buprenorphine (EDIB) doubles retention in treatment at 30 days compared to outpatient referral alone. Little is known about acceptance rat...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Lindsey K. Jennings, Allison Smith, Angela Moreland, Ralph Ward, Sarah Gainey, Suzanne Lane, Olivia Holodnik, Katherine Scarpino, Karen Hartwell, Louise Haynes, Kathleen T. Brady, Kelly Barth
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-03-01
Series:JEM Reports
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2773232025000057
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850241624459706368
author Lindsey K. Jennings
Allison Smith
Angela Moreland
Ralph Ward
Sarah Gainey
Suzanne Lane
Olivia Holodnik
Katherine Scarpino
Karen Hartwell
Louise Haynes
Kathleen T. Brady
Kelly Barth
author_facet Lindsey K. Jennings
Allison Smith
Angela Moreland
Ralph Ward
Sarah Gainey
Suzanne Lane
Olivia Holodnik
Katherine Scarpino
Karen Hartwell
Louise Haynes
Kathleen T. Brady
Kelly Barth
author_sort Lindsey K. Jennings
collection DOAJ
description Background: Medication for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) reduces morbidity and mortality for patients with opioid use disorder (OUD). Emergency department-initiated buprenorphine (EDIB) doubles retention in treatment at 30 days compared to outpatient referral alone. Little is known about acceptance rates of EDIB and reasons why patients decline this life-saving intervention. Objectives: The aim of this study was to quantify the number of patients who initiate and decline buprenorphine in the ED and determine reasons for declination. Methods: Seven SC EDs implemented EDIB programs that included ED-based peer recovery specialists (PRSs) to provide a brief intervention and assist with referral to outpatient treatment. The PRSs recorded patient interactions in a database including medical eligibility, if EDIB was provided, and the reason(s) why eligible patients declined EDIB. All eligible EDIB patients were entered in the PRS database and included in the study. Reasons for declining buprenorphine in eligible patients were analyzed with both fixed and free-text response options. Results: A total of 2205 patients were eligible for EDIB. Of those, 963 (43.6 %) patients accepted buprenorphine and 1242 (56.3 %) declined. The most common reasons for declination were 1) the “patient preferring non-MOUD treatment” (53.4 %), 2) “Not ready/would like to think about it and/or check with other treatment providers or case workers” (16.7 %). Conclusions: Over half of patients with OUD who were eligible for EDIB declined treatment, with the most common reason being preference for non-MOUD treatment. Given the success of MOUD for treatment of OUD, this topic requires further exploration.
format Article
id doaj-art-96ad43fb132843188bf62dc4abc2be98
institution OA Journals
issn 2773-2320
language English
publishDate 2025-03-01
publisher Elsevier
record_format Article
series JEM Reports
spelling doaj-art-96ad43fb132843188bf62dc4abc2be982025-08-20T02:00:33ZengElsevierJEM Reports2773-23202025-03-014110014110.1016/j.jemrpt.2025.100141Patient acceptance of emergency department-initiated buprenorphine and reasons for decliningLindsey K. Jennings0Allison Smith1Angela Moreland2Ralph Ward3Sarah Gainey4Suzanne Lane5Olivia Holodnik6Katherine Scarpino7Karen Hartwell8Louise Haynes9Kathleen T. Brady10Kelly Barth11Medical University of South Carolina, Department of Emergency Medicine, 169 Ashley Avenue, MSC 300, Charleston, SC, 29425, USA; Corresponding author.Medical University of South Carolina, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Addiction Sciences Division, 67 President Street, Charleston, SC, 29425, USAMedical University of South Carolina, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Addiction Sciences Division, 67 President Street, Charleston, SC, 29425, USAMedical University of South Carolina, Department of Public Health Sciences, 135 Cannon St., Suite 303 MSC 835, Charleston, SC, 29425, USAMedical University of South Carolina, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Addiction Sciences Division, 67 President Street, Charleston, SC, 29425, USAMedical University of South Carolina, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Addiction Sciences Division, 67 President Street, Charleston, SC, 29425, USAMedical University of South Carolina, Department of Emergency Medicine, 169 Ashley Avenue, MSC 300, Charleston, SC, 29425, USAMedical University of South Carolina, Department of Emergency Medicine, 169 Ashley Avenue, MSC 300, Charleston, SC, 29425, USAMedical University of South Carolina, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Addiction Sciences Division, 67 President Street, Charleston, SC, 29425, USAMedical University of South Carolina, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Addiction Sciences Division, 67 President Street, Charleston, SC, 29425, USAMedical University of South Carolina, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Addiction Sciences Division, 67 President Street, Charleston, SC, 29425, USAMedical University of South Carolina, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Addiction Sciences Division, 67 President Street, Charleston, SC, 29425, USABackground: Medication for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) reduces morbidity and mortality for patients with opioid use disorder (OUD). Emergency department-initiated buprenorphine (EDIB) doubles retention in treatment at 30 days compared to outpatient referral alone. Little is known about acceptance rates of EDIB and reasons why patients decline this life-saving intervention. Objectives: The aim of this study was to quantify the number of patients who initiate and decline buprenorphine in the ED and determine reasons for declination. Methods: Seven SC EDs implemented EDIB programs that included ED-based peer recovery specialists (PRSs) to provide a brief intervention and assist with referral to outpatient treatment. The PRSs recorded patient interactions in a database including medical eligibility, if EDIB was provided, and the reason(s) why eligible patients declined EDIB. All eligible EDIB patients were entered in the PRS database and included in the study. Reasons for declining buprenorphine in eligible patients were analyzed with both fixed and free-text response options. Results: A total of 2205 patients were eligible for EDIB. Of those, 963 (43.6 %) patients accepted buprenorphine and 1242 (56.3 %) declined. The most common reasons for declination were 1) the “patient preferring non-MOUD treatment” (53.4 %), 2) “Not ready/would like to think about it and/or check with other treatment providers or case workers” (16.7 %). Conclusions: Over half of patients with OUD who were eligible for EDIB declined treatment, with the most common reason being preference for non-MOUD treatment. Given the success of MOUD for treatment of OUD, this topic requires further exploration.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2773232025000057Opioid use disorderemergency department-initiated buprenorphine
spellingShingle Lindsey K. Jennings
Allison Smith
Angela Moreland
Ralph Ward
Sarah Gainey
Suzanne Lane
Olivia Holodnik
Katherine Scarpino
Karen Hartwell
Louise Haynes
Kathleen T. Brady
Kelly Barth
Patient acceptance of emergency department-initiated buprenorphine and reasons for declining
JEM Reports
Opioid use disorder
emergency department-initiated buprenorphine
title Patient acceptance of emergency department-initiated buprenorphine and reasons for declining
title_full Patient acceptance of emergency department-initiated buprenorphine and reasons for declining
title_fullStr Patient acceptance of emergency department-initiated buprenorphine and reasons for declining
title_full_unstemmed Patient acceptance of emergency department-initiated buprenorphine and reasons for declining
title_short Patient acceptance of emergency department-initiated buprenorphine and reasons for declining
title_sort patient acceptance of emergency department initiated buprenorphine and reasons for declining
topic Opioid use disorder
emergency department-initiated buprenorphine
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2773232025000057
work_keys_str_mv AT lindseykjennings patientacceptanceofemergencydepartmentinitiatedbuprenorphineandreasonsfordeclining
AT allisonsmith patientacceptanceofemergencydepartmentinitiatedbuprenorphineandreasonsfordeclining
AT angelamoreland patientacceptanceofemergencydepartmentinitiatedbuprenorphineandreasonsfordeclining
AT ralphward patientacceptanceofemergencydepartmentinitiatedbuprenorphineandreasonsfordeclining
AT sarahgainey patientacceptanceofemergencydepartmentinitiatedbuprenorphineandreasonsfordeclining
AT suzannelane patientacceptanceofemergencydepartmentinitiatedbuprenorphineandreasonsfordeclining
AT oliviaholodnik patientacceptanceofemergencydepartmentinitiatedbuprenorphineandreasonsfordeclining
AT katherinescarpino patientacceptanceofemergencydepartmentinitiatedbuprenorphineandreasonsfordeclining
AT karenhartwell patientacceptanceofemergencydepartmentinitiatedbuprenorphineandreasonsfordeclining
AT louisehaynes patientacceptanceofemergencydepartmentinitiatedbuprenorphineandreasonsfordeclining
AT kathleentbrady patientacceptanceofemergencydepartmentinitiatedbuprenorphineandreasonsfordeclining
AT kellybarth patientacceptanceofemergencydepartmentinitiatedbuprenorphineandreasonsfordeclining