Release Date
Geography
Language of Resource
Full Text Available
Open Access / OK to Reproduce
Peer Reviewed
Objective
This qualitative study aims to explore patients’ experiences of long-acting injectable depot buprenorphine treatment, including how it feels within the body, experiences of dosing cycles across time, and how this form of treatment relies on wider ecologies of care beyond the clinical encounter.
Findings/Key points
Our analysis destabilises commonplace assumptions about a linear, causal relationship between the pharmacological action of depot buprenorphine and experiences of treatment. Instead, it highlights patients’ variable experiences of depot buprenorphine, tracing the everyday practices, embodied feelings, expectations and wider networks of care that shape patient experiences.
Design/methods
Participants were recruited from sites in Sydney, regional New South Wales, and Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Thirty participants (16 men, 14 women) participated in semi-structured interviews. Participants had histories of both heroin and prescription opioid consumption, and opioid agonist therapy including daily dosing of buprenorphine and methadone.
