ArticleJournal of substance use and addiction treatment2023
Outcomes of a mobile medical unit for low-threshold buprenorphine access targeting opioid overdose hot spots in Chicago.
Article in Journal of substance use and addiction treatment, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers.
What it found
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Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed, 36 citations in OpenAlex.
- Cost-effectiveness of community-based interventions for reducing opioid overdose and non-overdose deaths: simulation modeling of HEALing Communities Study.Lancet regional health. Americas · 2026Article
- A mixed-methods evaluation of a statewide naloxone distribution project: considerations for future implementation of opioid overdose prevention initiatives.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Harm reduction and pharmacy practice: a scoping review of services for people who use drugs provided by pharmacy staff.BMJ open · 2026Article
- Low-threshold Buprenorphine: Proposing the Ideal Service Model to Engage People With Severe Opioid Use Disorder.Journal of addiction medicine · 2026Article
- Let the girls know, "you can come here": qualitative experiences with harm reduction and health services among women who use drugs in Chicago.Harm reduction journal · 2026Article
- "Convenience, Quickness, and Compassion": Experiences of People Involved in the Criminal-Legal System Accessing Medications for Opioid Use Disorder Services From a Mobile Unit in Chicago.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2026Article
- Insights from COVID-19 pandemic-era innovations at the intersection of homelessness and substance use: in-depth qualitative interviews with key informants.Harm reduction journal · 2026Article
- Mobile addiction treatment units: a narrative review.Addiction science & clinical practice · 2025Review
- Innovations at the intersection of homelessness and substance use during the COVID-19 pandemic: a scoping review.Harm reduction journal · 2025Article
- A taxonomy of social support interventions for People experiencing a syndemic of substance use disorder, criminal legal involvement, and downstream Health sequelae.SSM. Mental health · 2025Article
- Arrests and the Opioid Epidemic: An Investigation into the Spatial and Social Network Spillover of Opioid Overdoses in Chicago.Journal of quantitative criminology · 2025Article
- A National Mobile Medical Unit (MMU) Program to Address the Healthcare Needs of Veterans Experiencing Homelessness: An Evaluation Protocol.Health services insights · 2025Article
- An economic analysis of the cost of mobile units for harm reduction, naloxone distribution, and medications for opioid use disorder.Journal of substance use and addiction treatment · 2024Article
- Expanding single-venue services to better engage young people who inject drugs: insights from India.Harm reduction journal · 2024Review
- Patient experiences of buprenorphine dispensing from a mobile medical unit.Addiction science & clinical practice · 2024Article
- Mobile treatment for opioid use disorder: Implementation of community-based, same-day medication access interventions.Journal of substance use and addiction treatment · 2024Article
- Mobile service delivery in response to the opioid epidemic in Philadelphia.Addiction science & clinical practice · 2023Article
- Low-Threshold Buprenorphine in Non-Traditional Settings: A Scoping Review.Substance use : research and treatmentReview
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
12 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
introductionOpioid overdoses in Chicago are unevenly distributed, affecting medically underserved neighborhoods most acutely. Innovations in reaching patients perceived to be hard-to-reach (e.g., unstably housed, marginalized), especially in these underserved neighborhoods, are urgently needed to combat the overdose crisis. This study characterizes the pilot year of a mobile medical unit partnership between a large urban academic center and a community-based harm reduction organization in Chicago.
methodsThis is a retrospective cohort study of all patients who were seen on a mobile medical unit focused on providing low-threshold buprenorphine and primary care in areas with high opioid overdose rates on Chicago's West Side. Treatment episodes were accrued between July 1, 2021, and June 30, 2022 in the first year of operation. The main outcomes were number of patients seen, demographic characteristics of patients, and reason(s) for visit over time.
resultsThe study saw 587 unique patients on the mobile medical unit between July 1, 2021, and June 30, 2022. Approximately 64.6 % were African American, and more than half lacked active insurance or could not confirm insurance status at the time of visit. The most common reason for initial visit was COVID-19 vaccination (42.4 %), and the most common reason for follow-up visit was buprenorphine treatment (51.0 %). Eleven patients initially presented for other health concerns and later returned to initiate buprenorphine.
conclusionsThe mobile medical unit successfully reached nearly 600 patients in traditionally medically underserved Chicago neighborhoods with the highest overdose rates. The mobile unit's integrated approach met a variety of health needs, including buprenorphine initiation, with a unique opportunity for postoverdose initiation. Several patients initiated buprenorphine after presenting for different health concerns, showing the potential of an integrated approach to build on past mobile outreach programs and reach people with opioid use disorder who are not yet ready to initiate treatment.
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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.