The Balance Between Serving the Community and the Reality of Treating Opioid Use Disorder in Rural Primary Care Practices

Medication assisted treatment (MAT) is an evidence -based solution to combatting opioid use disorder (OUD); however, MAT is largely unavailable in rural areas. This study investigated clinician and staff perceptions related to OUD and MAT, in particular, buprenorphine treatment, in rural primary care practices. In this qualitative study, we interviewed staff members from 42 practices and analyzed the data using a grounded hermeneutic editing approach. Four key themes emerged: 1) policies and procedures to reduce opioid prescribing were already in place, 2) there was an emotional toll to treating those types of patients, 3) there is a lack of local resources for help with chronic pain and buprenorphine treatment, and 4) there is a strong desire to help local patients and community members but hesitancy to engage in buprenorphine treatment. Although there was almost no provision of MAT, many practices were interested in learning more to help their communities.

Automated summary

MAT is an evidence-based solution for opioid use disorder (OUD), but its availability in rural areas is limited. This study explored the views of healthcare professionals on OUD and MAT, particularly buprenorphine treatment, in rural primary care practices. The findings suggest that the lack of local resources, emotional burden, and hesitancy towards buprenorphine treatment are key barriers to MAT implementation. However, many practices expressed interest in learning more to help their communities.