With funding from RIZE Massachusetts, ICH led a qualitative research study with collaborators from the Boston Public Health Commission, Boston Medical Center, and BU School of Public Health. The study, called the Boston Overdose Linkage to Treatment Study (BOLTS), examined racial/ethnic inequities in access to treatment for people who recently experienced an opioid overdose in Boston. The study design and data collection were guided by input from a wide range of stakeholders, including front line service providers and people in recovery. BOLTS data collection is complete and included in-depth interviews with 59 Boston residents who have experienced an opioid overdose, of which 18 were Black and 23 were Latino/a/x. The study also included interviews with 28 key informants including policymakers, healthcare providers, harm reductionists, first responders, and community leaders. Interviews explored experiences and service-seeking behaviors before and after overdose, and barriers and facilitators to accessing treatment and harm reduction services, including barriers related to stigma and racism. Interviews also explored the impact of COVID-19 on service-seeking and access. Based on BOLTS findings, ICH has developed and disseminate community-informed recommendations for how Boston systems can improve access to opioid use disorder treatment and harm reduction services, particularly for Black and Latino/a/x community members.

Following Boston’s Declaration of Addiction and Homelessness as a Public Health Emergency (October 19, 2021), the BOLTS team conducted a sub-analysis  focused on elevating the perspectives of 29 participants who were living on the street in the Mass and Cass area at the time of their interview. The report has been released and is available here.

BOLTS findings related to housing and substance use treatment have been published in the International Journal of Drug Policy. The manuscript, entitled “Perspectives and recommendations of opioid overdose survivors experiencing unsheltered homelessness on housing, overdose, and substance use treatment in Boston, MA”, is available here.

BOLTS findings about factors that impact substance use treatment access, engagement, and racial equity have been published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine. You can find the manuscript here.