The Association between Social Connectedness and Opioid Reuse among Vulnerable Groups Receiving Medication for Opioid Use Disorder
Abstract
THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN SOCIAL CONNECTEDNESS AND OPIOID REUSE AMONG VULNERABLE GROUPS RECEIVING MEDICATION FOR OPIOID USE DISORDER JOLANDA L. HUDSON PUBLIC HEALTH ABSTRACT Introduction: Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) is a serious illness that continues to persist despite the many efforts of researchers, physicians, government agencies, state, and local programs, to eliminate the mortality rate associated with this disease. Although manageable, OUD is still taking the lives of citizens due to illegal opioid misuse. Understanding the dynamics of the disease and the contributing factors in various populations may inform researchers in successful intervention outcomes. Methods: A retrospective secondary data analysis utilizing the data from The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Emergency Department (ED) Initiated Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT)/Medications for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) to examine the association between social connectedness and opioid reuse. MOUDs are FDA-approved drugs to manage the symptoms related to opioid withdrawals, and detoxification that people with OUD experience when they are not using opioids. Although highly recommended, MOUD recovery retention is low. To examine reasons for low MOUD recovery retention, a logistic regression with two-way interactions was conducted to assess whether there is an association between social connectedness and opioid reuse among vulnerable populations (low SES). The analysis also looked to see whether age was a determining factor in MOUD recovery retention among these vulnerable groups. Results: The findings of this study did not yield any statistical significance between social connectedness and opioid reuse as it relates to vulnerable populations. Age was also not a factor in MOUD recovery retention. Conclusion: Although this study did not find a statistical significance to support that social connectedness was associated with opioid reuse, there is growing support that social connectedness plays a significant role in MOUD recovery (Kumar et al., 2021; Schuckit, 2016; Schweitzer et al., 2023). Until recently the majority of research concerning OUD has been focused on the White population due to the increased morbidity and mortality rate this groups experienced as a result of OUD. However, as the opioid epidemic continues more populations are being affected and researchers are finding that the larger the social network for vulnerable populations is, the more successful are the outcomes in MOUD recovery treatment. Keywords: social connectedness, stress, opioid use disorder, medication for opioid use disorder, vulnerable groups
