ArticleAfrican journal of primary health care & family medicine2023
Retention of service users on opioid substitution therapy in the City of Tshwane, South Africa.
Article in African journal of primary health care & family medicine, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 4 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.
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.
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Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 5 citations in OpenAlex.
- Implementation challenges and opportunities in decentralized methadone service delivery.BMC health services research · 2025Article
- Implementation Challenges and Opportunities in Decentralized Methadone Service Delivery.Research square · 2025Article
- Exploring factors underlying the use of nyaope in Tshwane, South Africa: A qualitative study.Journal of the colleges of medicine of South Africa · 2025Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundOpioid substitution therapy (OST) is evidence-based treatment for opioid use disorders and, when taken as maintenance therapy, has proven health and social benefits. The benefits of OST are achieved through the retention of service users in the treatment programme.
aimTo identify factors that affected retention of service users who had OST interrupted in less than 6 months of being in an OST programme.
settingThis qualitative study was conducted with 19 service users from eight Community-Oriented Substance Use Programme (COSUP) sites in the City of Tshwane, Gauteng, South Africa.
methodsParticipants were COSUP service users who had interrupted OST in less than 6 months since initiation and were purposefully selected from all COSUP sites. Demographic information was obtained and four focus group discussions covered challenges of OST retention. Discussions were recorded, transcribed and qualitatively analysed using Attride-Stirling's thematic networks framework.
resultsThe 19 participants were all male, mostly black African, with a mean age of 26 years. Facilitators of retention in OST were individual readiness to change OST accessibility, positive family and peer support, treatment monitoring, understanding and managing expectations of service users, contribution in society and meaningful opportunities for engagement. Barriers were the cost of OST, bureaucracy within the programme, inability to communicate challenges timeously and effectively to treatment providers, boredom, cravings and poverty.
conclusionOpioid substitution therapy programmes can ensure a holistic approach to prevent and treat harms related to illicit opioid use if they remain person-centred and are well-funded.Contribution: Understanding the barriers to, and facilitators of retention on OST can contribute to improved community-based service delivery.
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Registered trials
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