When a pandemic and epidemic collide: Lessons learned about how system barriers can interrupt implementation of addiction research

Abstract

Background Telehealth technologies are now featured more prominently in addiction treatment services than prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, but system barriers should be carefully considered for the successful implementation of innovative remote solutions for medication management and recovery coaching support for people with opioid use disorder (OUD). Method The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention funded a telehealth trial prior to the COVID-19 pandemic with a multi-institution team who attempted to implement an innovative protocol during the height of the pandemic in 2020 in Tampa, Florida. The study evaluated the effectiveness of a mobile device application, called MySafeRx, which integrated remote motivational recovery coaching with daily supervised dosing from secure pill dispensers via videoconference, on medication adherence during buprenorphine treatment. This paper provides a participant case example followed by a reflective evaluation of how the pandemic amplified both an existing research-to-practice gap and clinical system barriers during the implementation of telehealth clinical research intervention for patients with OUD. Findings Implementation challenges arose from academic institutional requirements, boundaries and role identity, clinical staff burnout and lack of buy-in, rigid clinical protocols, and limited clinical resources, which hampered recruitment and intervention engagement. Conclusions As the urgency for feasible and effective telehealth solutions continues to rise in response to the growing numbers of opioid-related deaths, the scientific community may use these lessons learned to re-envision the relationship between intervention implementation and the role of clinical research toward mitigating the opioid overdose epidemic.