BACKGROUND:
Undertreated pain is
common among people who use illicit drugs (PWUD), and can often reflect the
reluctance of health care providers to provide pain medication to individuals
with substance use disorders.
OBJECTIVE:
To investigate the
relationship between having ever been denied pain medication by a health care
provider and having ever reported using illicit drugs in hospital.
METHODS:
Data were derived from
participants enrolled in two Canadian prospective cohort studies between
December 2012 and May 2013. Using bivariable and multivariable logistic
regression analyses, the relationship between having ever been denied pain
medication by a health care provider and having ever reported using illicit
drugs in hospital was examined.
RESULTS:
Among 1053 PWUD who had
experienced ≥1 hospitalization, 452 (44%) reported having ever used illicit
drugs while in hospital and 491 (48%) reported having ever been denied pain
medication. In a multivariable model adjusted for confounders, having been
denied pain medication was positively associated with having used illicit drugs
in hospital (adjusted OR 1.46 [95% CI 1.14 to 1.88]).
CONCLUSIONS:
The results of the
present study suggest that the denial of pain medication is associated with the
use of illicit drugs while hospitalized. These findings raise questions about
how to appropriately manage addiction and pain among PWUD and indicate the potential
role that harm reduction programs may play in hospital settings.
Full article at: http://goo.gl/RDMtLR
By: Lianping Ti, MPH,1,2 Pauline Voon, RN BSN,1,2 Sabina Dobrer, MA,1 Julio Montaner, MD,1,3 Evan Wood, MD PhD,1,3and Thomas Kerr, PhD1,3
1British Columbia Centre for Excellence in
HIV/AIDS, St Paul’s Hospital;
2School of Population and Public Health;
3Department of Medicine, University of
British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia
Correspondence: Dr Thomas Kerr, Urban Health Research
Initiative, British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, 608 – 1081
Burrard Street, Vancouver, British Columbia V6Z 1Y6. Telephone 604-806-9116,
fax 604-806-9044, e-mail ac.cbu.tenefc@kt-irhu
More at: https://twitter.com/hiv_insight
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