Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40804689›Full record

ArticleAddiction science & clinical practice2025

"It beats the hell out of going to a hospital": service user experiences of telemedicine-based symptom-triggered alcohol withdrawal management.

Nikki Bozinoff, Divya Prasad, Ke Bin Xiao, Anthony Ngoy, Bernard Le Foll, Anna Gordezky, Christian S Hendershot, Sandra LaFleur, Lena C Quilty, Victor M Tang and 2 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Addiction science & clinical practice, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Nikki BozinoffAddictions Division, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada. Nikki.bozinoff@camh.ca.
Divya PrasadAddictions Division, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Ke Bin XiaoAddictions Division, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Anthony NgoyAddictions Division, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Bernard Le FollAddictions Division, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Anna GordezkyRemote Alcohol Withdrawal Community Advisory Board, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Christian S HendershotDepartment of Population and Public Health Sciences and Institute for Addiction Science, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, USA.
Sandra LaFleurRemote Alcohol Withdrawal Community Advisory Board, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Lena C QuiltyCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Victor M TangAddictions Division, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Tara Marie WatsonDepartment of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Matthew E SloanAddictions Division, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada. Matthew.sloan@camh.ca.

Funding

National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) R25-DA037756the Labatt Family Network for Research on the Biology of Depression R21DA061350the National Institute on Drug Abuse R21DA061350
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionIncreasingly, services for the management of substance use disorders have been developed or adapted for remote delivery. Limited research has investigated service user experience of these services. We undertook a qualitative sub-study, embedded within a pilot feasibility study of remote symptom-triggered alcohol withdrawal management, to better understand the experiences of participants. Our aim was to determine the acceptability of the intervention and refine intervention procedures.

methodsEligible participants were enrolled in the parent study and completed at least one day of telemedicine-delivered symptom-triggered alcohol withdrawal management. Individuals were adults with alcohol use disorder recruited using intensity sampling. Participants completed an audio-recorded, semi-structured interview. Thematic analysis was conducted using Braun and Clarke interpretive methodology.

resultsFourteen individuals were enrolled in the study. Six themes were identified: benefits of being in the home environment, technological tensions, intervention-specific feedback, personal motivations for participation, post-program achievements and changes and navigating the 'system'. Participants identified numerous benefits of being in the home environment including: increased comfort, privacy and security, normalizing abstinence in the home, flexibility to engage in other tasks, and the convenience of not travelling. Intervention-specific feedback included positive aspects of the intervention (interactions with staff, accountability, counselling, use of medication), areas for improvement (preparation, scheduling, medication logistics, and aftercare), and the meaning and role of having a support person available during treatment.

conclusionParticipants found remote alcohol withdrawal management to be satisfactory and associated with several benefits including increased comfort, privacy, normalizing abstinence in the home, flexibility and convenience. They also provided important feedback for refinement of the intervention. Findings suggest that remote alcohol withdrawal management could play an important role in improving access to medical management of alcohol withdrawal, particularly in rural, remote or underserved areas.

Indexed as

AlcoholismPatient Acceptance of Health CareSubstance Withdrawal SyndromeTelemedicineAdultFeasibility StudiesFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPatient SatisfactionPilot ProjectsQualitative ResearchAlcohol withdrawalPatient perspectivesQualitativeRemoteTelemedicine

Identifiers

PMID40804689
PMCPMC12345073

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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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.