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Category: Project

Description: This project is part of the partnership between the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto and the Canadian Red Cross (CRC) to evaluate the CRC’s Opioid Poisoning Education and Naloxone Distribution program. Funding for the project is provided to the Canadian Red Cross from Health Canada’s Substance Use and Addictions Program. While remote programs already existed prior to the pandemic and were shown to be effective in improving knowledge of opioids and opioid poisoning response, they have not been widely implemented as alternatives to conventional in-person Opioid Poisoning Education and Naloxone Distribution (OPEND) programs. Further, the literature lacks a review on the outcomes and acceptability of remote OPEND programs. In compiling a cohesive overview of existing remote OPEND programs and their advantages and disadvantages, we aim to support the development of future remote OPEND programs and promote them as effective solutions to the various issues of access surrounding traditional, in-person OPEND programs.