A qualitative study: Knowledge and attitudes of a sample of addiction professionals throughout Ireland to heroin-assisted treatment (HAT) and its relation to opioid agonist therapy treatment (OAT).

Abstract

Background: This research study examined addiction professionals’ knowledge and views on the current provision of opioid-agonist treatment and whether there is a role for HAT in the overall model. There are currently an estimated 19,875 problematic drug users in Ireland. Of these, 11,445 are receiving some type of OAT, which suggests that more treatment options should be made available.

Methods: Nine semi-structured interviews were used as the research method for this study, which was conducted using a qualitative approach. Participants were chosen from both rural and urban settings and were working in fields of homelessness, abstinence-based and harm reduction models of care.

Results: The study's findings indicate that the professional community is not well-versed in the use of HAT. Many participants acknowledged the significance that present OAT medications play in treating people who inject drugs, but they felt that there was not enough funding or support for the proper implementation of current harm reduction policies.

Conclusion: Stigma was a major theme in all interviews, while none of the people questioned thought that HAT would be implemented in Ireland anytime soon, citing the controversy surrounding the establishment of Ireland's first safe injection rooms.