I can't wait for the day when attention to the "opioid crisis" fully acknowledges the profound importance of having safe housing and enough food.

Brief thread & review of a new paper (1/)

Rose-Jacobs, et al. present results of a study with 100 women who were pregnant and receiving medication for opioid use disorder. 56% reported food insecurity, 61% housing instability, and 42% both. (2/) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0306460319301844?via%3Dihub

Having food and housing insecurity was significantly associated with depression and intimate partner violence. Notably, the study sample were women who were receiving MOUD and prenatal care -- they were the "connected" ones. (3/)

This also highlights that connection with health care and MOUD -- while important -- are not alone enough to make someone healthy. (4/)

Honestly, sometimes I feel like if I read another study seeking to do some "novel" cell phone app intervention to help people experiencing homelessness with substance use I might scream. Not to throw shade or say that this work isn't important... (5/)

...but when you ask people themselves what their most pressing needs are they very often say housing. I wish the resources and attention devoted to housing matched the need. (End).