Journal of urban health : bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine
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Monitoring the spatial and temporal course of opioid-related drug overdose mortality is a key public health determinant. Despite previous studies exploring the evolution of drug-related fatalities following the stay-at-home mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic, little is known about the spatiotemporal dynamics that mitigation efforts had on overdose deaths. The purpose of this study was to describe the spatial and temporal dynamics of overdose death relative risk using a 4-week interval over a span of 5 months following the implementation of the COVID-19 lockdown in the city of Chicago, IL. ⋯ We further found that a change in the area-level deprivation from the first to the fourth quintile increased the relative risk of a drug overdose risk by 44.5%. The social distancing index measuring the proportion of persons who stayed at home in each census block group was not associated with drug overdose mortality. We conclude by highlighting the importance of contextualizing the spatial and temporal risk in overdose mortality for implementing effective and safe harm reduction strategies during a global pandemic.
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The majority of overdose deaths in British Columbia (BC) occur among people using illicit substances alone in private residences. Some supportive housing in BC includes on-site access to a variety of health and substance use-related services. More recently, a number of supportive housing locations have started offering prescribed safer supply medications to people at high overdose risk, though these remain limited and under-evaluated. ⋯ Less than half (N = 12) of the study participants accessed on-site prescribed safer supply medications. Participants receiving on-site prescribed safer supply described positive benefits including reduced use of illicit opioids, and less reliance on illicit income generation activities. On-site prescribed safer supply programs within supportive housing environments are an important tool in addressing overdose risk.
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This study examined the characteristics of US tenants who reported delaying rent payments during the eviction moratoria in 2020 in respond to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. A nationally representative sample of 3393 US tenants was assessed from May to June 2020 during a period that eviction moratoria were issued across the country. ⋯ Tenants who delayed paying rent were nearly 7 times as likely to be at risk of eviction, more than 3 times as likely to endorse recent suicidal ideation, and 1.6 times as likely to report recent illicit drug use compared to tenants who did not delay paying rent. These findings highlight the health and social needs of tenants in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Underrepresentation of Black individuals in genetic research is a longstanding issue. There are well-documented strategies to improve the enrollment of Black participants; however, few studies explore these strategies-as well as the barriers and facilitators for participation-by sampling Black people who have previously participated in genetic research. This study explores the decision-making process of Black adults who have participated in genetic research to identify best practices in the recruitment of Black subjects in genetic research. ⋯ Using thematic content analysis, 4 themes emerged from the interviews: (1) Participants are active players in health system, (2) information is power, and transparency is key, (3) therapeutic alliances and study characteristics facilitate participation, and (4) race pervades the research process. The decision to participate in genetic research for the participants in our study was prompted by participants' internal motivations and facilitated by trust in their doctor, trust in the institution, and ease of participation. Most participants viewed their enrollment in genetic research in the context of their own racial identity and the history of medical racism in the USA.
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From March 2020 through May 2021, nightlife venues were shut down and large gatherings were deemed illegal in New York City (NYC) due to COVID-19. This study sought to determine the extent of risky party attendance during the COVID-19 shutdown among people who attend electronic dance music parties in NYC. During the first four months that venues were permitted to reopen (June through September 2021), time-space sampling was used to survey adults (n = 278) about their party attendance during the first year of the shutdown (March 2020-March 2021). ⋯ Attending >10 parties was associated with increased risk for never wearing a mask (aPR = 2.74, 95% CI: 1.11-6.75) and for no other attendees wearing masks (aPR = 4.22, 95% CI: 1.26-14.07). Illegal dance parties continued in NYC during the COVID-19 shutdown. Prevention and harm reduction efforts to mitigate risk of COVID-19 transmission during such shutdowns are sorely needed.