The following is a summary of “Use of buprenorphine to-go packs in the emergency department,” published in the March 2024 issue of Emergency Medicine by Zimmerman, et al.

For a study, researchers sought to assess the impact of buprenorphine to-go packs as a continuing treatment option for patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) with opioid use disorder (OUD) across a health system.

Adult patients discharged with a buprenorphine to-go pack from one of ten EDs within a significant health system were included. Primary outcomes assessed within 30 days of ED discharge were: return to a health system ED and filling history of buprenorphine in the state prescription drug monitoring program database. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics in Microsoft Excel.

A total of 124 patients received buprenorphine to-go packs. The sample was predominantly male (79; 63.7%), white (89; 71.8%), and on Medicaid (79; 63.7%), with a mean age of 40.9 years. Of these, 43 patients (34.7%) were initiated on buprenorphine for the first time, while 81 (65.3%) had received buprenorphine (prescription or to-go) previously. At 30 days post-visit, 76 (61.3%) had filled buprenorphine prescriptions, and 40 (32.3%) returned to an ED within the health system for opioid withdrawal (17; 42.5%), non-OUD-related reasons (22; 55%), or overdose (1; 2.5%).

Implementing a system-wide buprenorphine to-go supply at ED discharge is a feasible option to ensure continuity of care for patients with OUD.

Reference: sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0735675723007040