Managed alcohol: one community's innovative response to risk management during COVID-19.
Harm Reduct J
; 18(1): 125, 2021 12 06.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1555202
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Harm reduction programs often lack community-based support and can be controversial, despite data demonstrating effectiveness. This article describes one small Alaskan community's development of a harm reduction managed alcohol program (MAP) in the context of a city-run quarantine site for individuals experiencing homelessness. The MAP was developed to support quarantining by COVID-19-exposed or COVID-positive individuals who also experienced chronic homelessness, a severe alcohol use disorder, and heightened health risks related to potentially unsupported alcohol withdrawal.METHOD:
Five interviews with key informants involved in planning or implementation of the MAP were conducted using rapid qualitative analysis and narrative analysis techniques.OUTCOME:
This study documents the planning and implementation of an innovative application of a managed alcohol harm reduction intervention in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this instance, a MAP was used specifically to limit hospital admissions for alcohol withdrawal during a surge of cases in the community, as well as to mitigate spread of the virus. Key informants report no residents enrolled in the MAP program as a part of quarantine required hospitalization for withdrawal or for COVID symptoms, and no shelter resident left the quarantine site while still contagious with COVID-19. Additionally, the level of community support for the program was much higher than originally expected by organizers.CONCLUSIONS:
This program highlighted an example of how a community recognized the complexity and potential risk to individuals experiencing structural vulnerability related to homelessness and a severe AUD, and the community at large, and was able to create an alternative path to minimize those risks using a harm reduction strategy.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Substance Withdrawal Syndrome
/
Ill-Housed Persons
/
Alcoholism
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Qualitative research
Limits:
Humans
Language:
English
Journal:
Harm Reduct J
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
S12954-021-00574-5
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