The American journal of medicine
-
Observational Study
Effect of inpatient medication assisted therapy on against-medical-advice discharge and readmission rates.
Patients who present to the hospital for infectious complications of intravenous opioid use are at high risk for against-medical-advice discharge and readmissions. The role of medication-assisted treatment for inpatients is not clear. We aimed to assess outcomes prior to and after rollout of an inpatient buprenorphine-based opioid use disorder protocol, as well as to assess outcomes in general for medication-assisted therapy. ⋯ There is a strong association between medication-assisted therapy and reduced against-medical-advice discharge rates. Additionally, maintenance medication-assisted therapy at time of discharge is strongly associated with reduced readmissions rates.