ReviewHarm reduction journal2020
Rapid evidence review of harm reduction interventions and messaging for people who inject drugs during pandemic events: implications for the ongoing COVID-19 response.
Review in Harm reduction journal, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 21 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
21 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Communication to promote and support physical distancing for COVID-19 prevention and control: a rapid reviewThe Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2023Pooled it
- What treatment and services are effective for people who are homeless and use drugs? A systematic 'review of reviews'.PloS one · 2021Pooled it
- The impact of COVID-19 on people who inject drugs in New York City: increased risk and decreased access to services.Harm reduction journal · 2021Trial
- Global burden and inequalities of drug use disorders from 1990 to 2021 with projections to 2036.Journal of global health · 2025Article
- Adapting the alcohol and alcohol problems perception questionnaire and the drug and drug problems perception questionnaire: A psychometric analysis of a person-centred approach.Drug and alcohol dependence reports · 2025Article
- Key and evolving needs of service providers in women's harm reduction centers during the COVID-19 pandemic.Harm reduction journal · 2025Article
- Developing a comprehensive inventory to define harm reduction housing.Harm reduction journal · 2025Article
- Analysis and mapping of harm reduction research in the context of injectable drug use: identifying research hotspots, gaps and future directions.Harm reduction journal · 2024Article
- Elucidating Harm Reduction Principles in a Client-Centered Representative Payee Program.Community mental health journal · 2024Article
- Considerations for the design of overdose education and naloxone distribution interventions: results of a multi-stakeholder workshop.BMC public health · 2023Article
- Multi-level influences on increased overdose risk behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic among people who use drugs in Rhode Island: a qualitative investigation.Harm reduction journal · 2023Article
- Lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic for substance misuse services: findings from a peer-led study.Harm reduction journal · 2022Article
- Barriers to engaging people who use drugs in harm reduction services during the COVID-19 pandemic: A mixed methods study of syringe services program perspectives.The International journal on drug policy · 2022Article
- Impact of COVID-19 among people who use drugs: A qualitative study with harm reduction workers and people who use drugs.Harm reduction journal · 2022Article
- Impact of COVID-19 on substance use disorder treatment services in Kenya: Qualitative findings from healthcare providers.The International journal on drug policy · 2022Article
- HIV Care Continuum Services for People Who Inject Drugs in Kazakhstan During COVID-19: A Qualitative Study of Service Provider Perspectives.Global health, science and practice · 2022Article
- Impact of an overdose reversal program in the context of a safe consumption site in Northern Mexico.Drug and alcohol dependence reports · 2022Article
- Impact of COVID-19 Among People Who Use Drugs: A Qualitative Study With Harm Reduction Workers and People Who Use Drugs.Research square · 2022Article
- Client perspectives on the accessibility and quality of substance use treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic.Drug and alcohol dependence reports · 2021Article
- Maintaining treatment and prevention programs for opioid use disorders during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.Current opinion in psychiatry · 2021Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundPeople who inject drugs are at increased health risk in a pandemic due to their greater susceptibility to severe disease and as a consequence of the restrictions put in place to halt the spread of infection. Harm reduction (HR) services, which aim to reduce the negative effects of drug use on health, are likely to be diminished in a pandemic. However, innovative HR interventions and messaging may also develop in response to such a crisis. It is vital to understand the most effective ways to deliver HR in pandemic situations so that guidance can be provided for current and future disruptions to service provision.
methodsA rapid evidence review was conducted with the aim of exploring what HR interventions and messaging are most effective during a pandemic-type situation. Ten health databases were systematically searched using terms relevant to the research aim. A search was also made of grey literature, including a targeted search of HR messaging from key national and service provider websites.
resultsIn the initial search, 121 pieces of evidence were identified which, after screening and de-duplication, resulted in 60 for inclusion. The included evidence consists mainly of non-peer reviewed, pre-publication or expert opinion pieces. The rapid findings suggest that HR services should be deemed essential during a pandemic, with staff supported to work safely and social distancing adaptations implemented. Services should be encouraged to operate more flexibly; for instance, in deciding the amounts of take-home supplies of injecting equipment and medications. The evidence on HR communication was very limited but key messages on infection control, uncertain drug supply and accessing services were identified.
conclusionsThis rapid evidence review identifies implications for national policy makers, commissioners and HR service providers. A person-centred rather than disease-centred approach to HR delivered by collaborating partners, as well as prioritizing tailored HR messaging, is recommended. Further research evaluating the delivery of HR services and messaging, particularly focusing on health inequalities, is urgently needed.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.