Post-Overdose Extended-Release Buprenorphine Initiation Facilitated by a Partnership Between Emergency Medical Services and an Outpatient Substance Use Disorder Observation Unit

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

People who experience a nonfatal opioid overdose and receive naloxone are at high risk of subsequent overdose death but experience gaps in access to medications for opioid use disorder. The immediate post-naloxone period offers an opportunity for buprenorphine initiation. Limited data indicate that buprenorphine administration by emergency medical services (EMS) after naloxone overdose reversal is safe and feasible. We describe a case in which a partnership between a low-barrier substance use disorder (SUD) observation unit and EMS allowed for buprenorphine initiation with extended-release injectable buprenorphine after naloxone overdose reversal.