SynthesisPloS one2021
What treatment and services are effective for people who are homeless and use drugs? A systematic 'review of reviews'.
Synthesis in PloS one, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 26 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
26 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Pooled it
- What treatment and services are effective for people who are homeless and use drugs? A systematic 'review of reviews'.PloS one · 2021Pooled it
- Trial
- Trial
- Substance use and posttraumatic stress disorder: 12-month outcomes among adults experiencing chronic homelessness in Australia.Drug and alcohol review · 2023Trial
- Assessing the feasibility, acceptability and accessibility of a peer-delivered intervention to reduce harm and improve the well-being of people who experience homelessness with problem substance use: the SHARPS study.Harm reduction journal · 2022Trial
- Protocol: Community-Based Interventions to Improve the Health of People Experiencing Homelessness in High-Income Countries: An Evidence and Gap Map.Campbell systematic reviews · 2026Article
- Article
- Impact of Demographic Factors and Other Characteristics on Housing Outcomes at Discharge from Transitional Care Program.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2026Article
- Addressing inequalities in the primary and secondary outpatient interface: A policy-focused evidence brief.Public health in practice (Oxford, England) · 2026Article
- Homelessness, justice involvement, and publicly funded substance use treatment after Medicaid expansion.Health affairs scholar · 2026Article
- Weather-Related Trends in Drug Use Incidents Aboard Transit Vehicles.Journal of urban health : bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine · 2026Article
- Fentanyl test strip use and homelessness among people who use drugs in Rhode Island.The International journal on drug policy · 2026Article
- Improving access to healthcare services for people experiencing homelessness: evidence from a scoping review of interventions.Health & justice · 2025Review
- Article
- Organising housing and service provision for persons with co-occurring substance use and mental health problems: a scoping review in the ROP Municipal.BMC psychiatry · 2025Article
- Brain injury, mental health and substance use in homeless populations: community-generated recommendations for healthcare service delivery and research.BMC health services research · 2025Article
- Implementing a pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) promotion intervention among persons who inject drugs: Perspectives from community and research implementation partners.Journal of substance use and addiction treatment · 2025Article
- A scoping review of factors that affect unmet dental service needs among people living with HIV/AIDS.BMC oral health · 2025Article
- "It's Not Just One Decision, It's a Whole Lifestyle Change": Mixed Methods Analysis of Factors Associated with Readiness to Change Substance Use Patterns Among Community Recruited People Who Inject Drugs.Substance use & misuse · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundPeople who experience homelessness and those vulnerably housed experience disproportionately high rates of drug use and associated harms, yet barriers to services and support are common. We undertook a systematic 'review of reviews' to investigate the effects of interventions for this population on substance use, housing, and related outcomes, as well as on treatment engagement, retention and successful completion. METHODS AND
findingsWe searched ten electronic databases from inception to October 2020 for reviews and syntheses, conducted a grey literature search, and hand searched reference lists of included studies. We selected reviews that synthesised evidence on any type of treatment or intervention that reported substance use outcomes for people who reported being homeless. We appraised the quality of included reviews using the Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal Checklist for Systematic Reviews and Research Syntheses and the Scale for the Assessment of Narrative Review Articles. Our search identified 843 citations, and 25 reviews met the inclusion criteria. Regarding substance use outcomes, there was evidence that harm reduction approaches lead to decreases in drug-related risk behaviour and fatal overdoses, and reduce mortality, morbidity, and substance use. Case management interventions were significantly better than treatment as usual in reducing substance use among people who are homeless. The evidence indicates that Housing First does not lead to significant changes in substance use. Evidence regarding housing and other outcomes is mixed.
conclusionsPeople who are homeless and use drugs experience many barriers to accessing healthcare and treatment. Evidence regarding interventions designed specifically for this population is limited, but harm reduction and case management approaches can lead to improvements in substance use outcomes, whilst some housing interventions improve housing outcomes and may provide more stability. More research is needed regarding optimal treatment length as well as qualitative insights from people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.
Identifiers
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.