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The cost-effectiveness of naloxone programs for the treatment of heroin overdose in the ‘street’: a 2-years data collection by the Street Unit of the Villa Maraini Foundation

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posted on 2023-06-09, 12:10 authored by Massimo Barra, Giovanni Francesco Maria Direnzo, Fabio Vittorio Patruno, Mauro Patti, Giancarlo Rodoquino, Ettore Rossi, Rocco Santoro, Aldo Badiani
The mortality rate of opioid users is about 5 to 10 times greater than that of the general population, and the overdose represents the most common cause of death. When timely treated with the opioid antagonist naloxone, the opioid overdose is rarely lethal. Unfortunately, many opioid overdoses occur in isolated, hidden, hard to reach location. To circumvent this problem, Villa Maraini Foundation in Rome has created a rescue team, the Street Unit, to provide basic life support and administer naloxone for the treatment of opioid overdose in urban environments. The aim of this paper is to review the cost-effectiveness of our Street Unit. We evaluated the cost of 90 overdose interventions provided by the Street Unit to that provided by the Accident & Emergency departments of the Italian National Health System. The Street Unit not only successfully treated all overdoses but also provided a dramatic reduction in costs, ranging from €123,367.05 (best-case scenario) to €203,377.05 (worst-case scenario). This finding suggests that the treatment of opioid overdose in the street context represents a safe and cost-effective strategy to reduce opioid overdose related mortality.

History

Publication status

  • Published

File Version

  • Published version

Journal

Heroin Addiction and Related Clinical Problems

ISSN

1592-1638

Publisher

Associazione per l'Utilizzo delle Conoscenze Neuroscientifiche a fini Sociali

Issue

4

Volume

20

Department affiliated with

  • Psychology Publications

Research groups affiliated with

  • Sussex Addiction Research and Intervention Centre (SARIC) Publications

Full text available

  • Yes

Peer reviewed?

  • Yes

Legacy Posted Date

2018-02-15

First Open Access (FOA) Date

2018-08-29

First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date

2018-02-15

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