ArticleHarm reduction journal2019
Understanding the public health consequences of suspending a rural syringe services program: a qualitative study of the experiences of people who inject drugs.
Article in Harm reduction journal, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 47 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
47 citing papers in PubMed, 86 citations in OpenAlex.
- Correlates of Syringe Acquisition at Syringe Services Program and Pharmacies among Persons Who Inject Drugs: National HIV Behavioral Surveillance, United States, 2022.Journal of urban health : bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine · 2026Article
- Exploring Perspectives About Public Health Vending Machine Implementation on an American Indian Reservation in the Northern Midwest, United States.AIDS and behavior · 2026Article
- "We knew it was coming: we didn't act" perspectives from people who use drugs and substance use workforce on the impact of delays in implementation of the supervised injection facility and drug checking interventions.Harm reduction journal · 2025Article
- People entering opioid substance use treatment have low rates of naloxone knowledge and possession.Drug and alcohol dependence · 2025Article
- Examining geographic disparities in access to no-cost naloxone in North Carolina: A cross-sectional survey of naloxone distribution programs.The Journal of rural health : official journal of the American Rural Health Association and the National Rural Health Care Association · 2025Article
- Estimating the Cost-Saving Threshold of a Rural Syringe Services Program Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic.AIDS and behavior · 2025Article
- Perspectives of syringe services program operators in Michigan on their relationship with substance use treatment: a qualitative study.Harm reduction journal · 2025Article
- A Scoping Review of the Utilization of Opioid Use Treatment, Harm Reduction, and Culturally Tailored Interventions Among Racial/Ethnic Minorities in the United States.International journal of mental health and addiction · 2025Article
- Experiencing Housing Instability in Rural North America and Access to Health Care and Supportive Services: A Scoping Review.Journal of health care for the poor and underserved · 2025Article
- Racialized environments and syringe services program implementation: County-level factors.Drug and alcohol dependence · 2024Article
- Lessons Learned Implementing Syringe Services Programs at Rural Health Departments in Kentucky.AIDS and behavior · 2024Article
- Community Support for Harm Reduction and Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder.Journal of community health · 2024Article
- Financial barriers, facilitators, and strategies among syringe services programs in the U.S., and their impact on implementation and health outcomes.SSM. Qualitative research in health · 2024Article
- Posttraumatic stress disorder in people who use drugs: syringe services program utilization, treatment need, and preferences for onsite mental health care.Harm reduction journal · 2024Article
- "No-one just does drugs during business hours!": evaluation of a 24/7 primary needle and syringe program in St Kilda, Australia.Harm reduction journal · 2024Article
- A Qualitative Analysis of Barriers to Accessing HIV Prevention Services During an HIV Outbreak among Persons who Inject Drugs in West Virginia.AIDS and behavior · 2024Article
- Were Needles Everywhere?: Differing Views on Syringe Waste and Disposal Associated With Needs-Based Syringe Services Programs Among Community Partners and Persons Who Inject Drugs.Substance use & misuse · 2024Article
- HIV risk and prevention among clients of a delivery-based harm reduction service during an HIV outbreak among people who use drugs in northern rural Minnesota, USA.Harm reduction journal · 2023Article
- Factors Associated with HIV Testing Among People Who Inject Drugs: Findings from a Multistate Study at the Start of the COVID-19 Pandemic.AIDS and behavior · 2023Article
- Factors associated with receptive injection equipment sharing among people who inject drugs: findings from a multistate study at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.Harm reduction journal · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundSyringe services programs (SSPs) are evidence-based interventions that are associated with decreases in prevalence and incidence rates of HIV and viral hepatitis among people who inject drugs (PWID). SSPs are also effective conduits to deliver overdose prevention resources among PWID. In December 2015, the Kanawha-Charleston Health Department (KCHD) in West Virginia implemented a SSP; however, the program was indefinitely suspended in early 2018 following policy changes that would have forced the program to operate in ways that conflicted with established best practices. The purpose of this research is to explore the public health implications of the suspension of the KCHD SSP among rural PWID.
methodsWe conducted semi-structured interviews with 27 PWID (59.3% male, 88.9% White) to explore access to sterile injection equipment and overdose prevention resources, high-risk injection practices, and HIV risk perceptions following the KCHD SSP suspension. Participants were recruited from street locations frequented by PWID. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. We employed an iterative, modified constant comparison approach to systematically code and synthesize textual interview data.
resultsParticipants described the KCHD SSP as providing a variety of harm reduction services to PWID and being able to speak honestly with SSP staff about their drug use without fear of stigmatization. The suspension of the KCHD SSP fundamentally changed the public health landscape for PWID, ushering in a new era of increased risks for acquiring bloodborne infections and overdose. PWID described more frequently injecting with used syringes and engaging in a range of high-risk injection practices after the SSP was suspended. PWID also discussed having decreased access to naloxone and being less likely to get routinely tested for HIV following the KCHD SSP suspension.
conclusionsThis research demonstrates that the suspension of a SSP in rural West Virginia increased risks for HIV/HCV acquisition and overdose among PWID. The suspension of the SSP led to community-wide decreases in access to sterile injection equipment and naloxone among PWID. The suspension of the KCHD SSP should be viewed as a call to action for sustaining evidence-based interventions in the face of sociopolitical forces that attempt to subvert public health.
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Registered trials
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