Experts call on the federal government to support coordinated and strengthened responses by infectious diseases and substance use specialists, revealed an article published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases. The article, by a team of //authors from the University of Maryland School of Medicine, and from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases that includes NIAID Director Dr. Anthony Fauci, notes that opioid use has climbed since the late 1990s, leading to increased use of injecting drugs.
‘Spread of infections linked to rising rates of opioid use across the country including HIV, viral hepatitis, skin and soft tissue infections, bone and joint infections and endocarditis. ’
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By 2016, the authors note, injecting drug use was linked to 13% of new HIV diagnoses and the majority of new hepatitis C infections. The article notes that infectious disease physicians confronting outbreaks of infections linked to injection drug use increasingly find themselves on the frontlines of the nation's opioid epidemic, and must be equipped to recognize, refer, and treat substance use disorders. In turn, the authors recommend that providers of substance use disorder responses, including mental health professionals, nurses and social workers, be prepared to screen clients for infections, and to refer those at risk to programs providing sterile needles and syringes and other supports to reduce the risk of infection.
Limited numbers of providers in both fields, as well as a lack of sterile needle and syringe programs, the authors note, exacerbate the challenges providers face in addressing the growing crisis.
The authors call for investments by the federal government ensuring the expansion of evidence-based interventions, and support for the needed workforce.
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We will continue to urge support for evidence-based, innovative and responsive care models and for addressing the challenges faced by the workforce that will be essential to ending the impacts of the opioid crisis.
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