The DOI matches its Crossref record; 79 of the 80 references it cites were found in a registry or an index, and 1 are not checked yet.
Strategies used by people who inject drugs to avoid stigma in healthcare settings
Open accessAbstract
Background People who inject drugs (PWID) have limited engagement in healthcare services and report frequent experiences of stigma and mistreatment when accessing services. This paper explores the impact of stigma against injection drug use on healthcare utilization among PWID in the U.S. Northeast.Methods We recruited PWID through community-based organizations (CBOs; e.g., syringe service programs). Participants completed brief surveys and semi-structured interviews lasting approximately 45 min exploring HIV risk behaviors and prevention needs. Thematic analysis examined the emergent topic of stigma experiences in relation to healthcare utilization.Results Among 33 PWID (55% male; age range 24-62 years; 67% White; 24% Latino), most used heroin (94%) and injected at least daily (60%). Experiences of dehumanization in healthcare settings were common, with many participants perceiving that they had been treated unfairly or discriminated against due to their injection drug use. As participants anticipated this type of stigma from healthcare providers, they developed strategies to avoid it, including delaying presenting for healthcare, not disclosing drug use, downplaying pain, and seeking care elsewhere. In contrast to large institutional healthcare settings, participants described non-stigmatizing environments within CBOs, where they experienced greater acceptance, mutual respect, and stronger connections with staff.Conclusions Stigma against injection drug use carries important implications for PWID health. Increased provider training on addiction as a medical disorder could improve PWID healthcare experiences, and integrating health services into organizations frequented by PWID could increase utilization of health services by this population.
Overview
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The cited source says what the claim attributes to it.
In the citing paper
“Building rapport and trust through low-threshold, non-stigmatizing services in community-based organizations, rather than in large institutional clinics, helps mitigate the anticipated discrimination that often deters these patients from seeking care [46].”
From Psychosocial Interventions for Improving Treatment Adherence in Tuberculosis Patients: A Scoping Review of Evidence-Based Approaches. (2026) · cites this paper as [46]
In the citing paper
“It is well evidenced that PWID face significant barriers in accessing appropriate healthcare due to stigma and discrimination from healthcare professionals as well as structural difficulties in accessing and attending medical appointments [29–31].”
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Citations
Cites
Stigma: Notes on the Management of Spoiled Identity
(1969) · Postgraduate Medical Journal · doi:10.1136/pgmj.45.527.642 · Cited by 14,255 · cited 1×
“Stigma, defined by Goffman as a “deeply discrediting attribute,” is well researched among the larger population of people who use illicit drugs (Goffman, 1963; Kulesza et al., 2013).”
Lippa, N. C., & Sanderson, S. C. (2013) · Human Heredity · doi:10.1159/000353712 · Cited by 6,095
Stigma as a fundamental cause of population health inequalities
Hatzenbuehler, M. L., Phelan, J. C., & Link, B. G. (2013) · American Journal of Public Health · doi:10.2105/ajph.2012.301069 · Cited by 2,674 · cited 1×
“Internalized stigma carries harmful effects on health and wellbeing (Ahern et al., 2007; Cama et al., 2016; Hatzenbuehler et al., 2013; Kamaradova et al., 2016; Luoma et al., 2007; Rivera et al., 2014; Skeer et al., 2018; von Hippel et al., 2018).”
Backgroundvan Boekel, L. C., Brouwers, E. P. M., van Weeghel, J., & Garretsen, H. F. L. (2013) · Drug and Alcohol Dependence · doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2013.02.018 · Cited by 1,810
DeCuir-Gunby, J. T., Marshall, P. L., & McCulloch, A. W. (2011) · Field Methods · doi:10.1177/1525822x10388468 · Cited by 1,456 · cited 1×
“We reviewed transcripts for quality and to identify emergent themes (DeCuir-Gunby et al., 2011).”
From Conceptualizing to Measuring HIV Stigma: A Review of HIV Stigma Mechanism Measures
Earnshaw, V. A., & Chaudoir, S. R. (2009) · AIDS and Behavior · doi:10.1007/s10461-009-9593-3 · Cited by 1,222 · cited 1×
“, “external reactions to stigma”) as they emerged (Earnshaw and Chaudoir, 2009).”
BackgroundSelf-stigma and the “why try” effect: impact on life goals and evidence-based practices
CORRIGAN, P. W., LARSON, J. E., & RÜSCH, N. (2009) · World Psychiatry · doi:10.1002/j.2051-5545.2009.tb00218.x · Cited by 1,074 · cited 3×
“Although little research has focused on building resilience among PWID, some group therapy interventions have demonstrated modest efficacy in building resilience among people living with mental illness and HIV (Corrigan et al., 2009; Mittal et al., 2012; Rao et al., 2018).”
BackgroundFurther evaluation of the Dutch supervision system for suicides of mental health care users
(2013) · EUR Research Repository (Erasmus University Rotterdam) · doi:10.1176/appi · Cited by 1,030
Livingston, J. D., Milne, T., Fang, M. L., & Amari, E. (2012) · Addiction · doi:10.1111/j.1360-0443.2011.03601.x · Cited by 927 · cited 1×
“interventions could help increase cultural competency and decrease stigma towards PWID at multiple levels within health organizations, such models require further research and evaluation (Brener et al., 2017; Livingston et al., 2012).”
BackgroundStigma, discrimination and the health of illicit drug users
Ahern, J., Stuber, J., & Galea, S. (2006) · Drug and Alcohol Dependence · doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2006.10.014 · Cited by 860 · cited 2×
“Internalized stigma carries harmful effects on health and wellbeing (Ahern et al., 2007; Cama et al., 2016; Hatzenbuehler et al., 2013; Kamaradova et al., 2016; Luoma et al., 2007; Rivera et al., 2014; Skeer et al., 2018; von Hippel et al., 2018).”
Background
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 101–200 of 525
COVID-19 vaccine uptake among people who inject drugs in Tijuana Mexico
Vera, A., Muñoz, S., Artamónova, I., Abramovitz, D. A., Mittal, M. L., Rosales, C., Strathdee, S. A., & Rangel, M. G. (2022) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2022.931306 · Cited by 17
Collins, A. B., Baird, J. B., Nimaja, E., Ashenafi, Y., Clark, M. A., & Beaudoin, F. L. (2023) · BMC Health Services Research · doi:10.1186/s12913-023-09387-7 · Cited by 21
Bazzi, A. R., Vera, A., Stamos-Buesig, T., Abramovitz, D. A., Vera, C. F., Artamónova, I., Patterson, T. L., & Strathdee, S. A. (2022) · Addiction Science & Clinical Practice · doi:10.1186/s13722-022-00328-z · Cited by 17
Public Restrooms and the Opioid Epidemic
Fozouni, L., Buchheit, B. M., Walley, A. Y., Testa, M. A., & Chatterjee, A. (2019) · Substance Abuse · doi:10.1080/08897077.2019.1640834 · Cited by 17
“of injection drug use and PWID have significant impacts on self-perceptions of PWID and how they engage with the health care system.(20) For instance, despite perceived harms from fluorescent blue lights, high percentages of PWID do”
BackgroundPearce, L. A., Homayra, F., Dale, L. M., Moallef, S., Barker, B., Norton, A., Hayashi, K., & Nosyk, B. (2020) · International Journal of Drug Policy · doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2020.102873 · Cited by 16
“However, despite complex health challenges, people who use drugs face substantial barriers to receiving quality and equitable health care services (Biancarelli et al., 2019; Hopwood & Treloar, 2007; Paquette, Syvertsen & Pollini, 2018).”
BackgroundInfluentialBazzi, A. R., Bordeu, M., Baumgartner, K., Sproesser, D. M., Bositis, C. M., Krakower, D., Mimiaga, M. J., & Biello, K. B. (2023) · BMC Public Health · doi:10.1186/s12889-023-15429-w · Cited by 19
Priest, K. C., McCarty, D. W., & Lovejoy, T. I. (2020) · Journal of General Internal Medicine · doi:10.1007/s11606-020-06266-3 · Cited by 16
Guţă, A., Perri, M., Strıke, C., Gagnon, M., & Carusone, S. C. (2021) · International Journal of Drug Policy · doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2021.103438 · Cited by 16
Yeager, S., Abramovitz, D. A., Vera, A., Vera, C. F., Algarin, A. B., Smith, L. R., Rangel, G., Artamónova, I., Patterson, T. L., Bazzi, A. R., et al. (2022) · BMC Public Health · doi:10.1186/s12889-022-13273-y · Cited by 16
“PWID often underutilize healthcare services due to stigma, discrimination, medical mistrust [21, 22], and mistreatment [15, 23, 24].”
BackgroundPain and Barriers to Accessing Health Services Among People Who Use Drugs
Voon, P., Wang, L., Nosova, E., Hayashi, K., Milloy, M., Wood, E., & Kerr, T. H. (2020) · Pain Management Nursing · doi:10.1016/j.pmn.2020.11.008 · Cited by 15
“…suggests that PWUD who have concurrent pain may be more likely to be denied pain medication, experience stigma due to perceived “drug-seeking,” and self-discharge from or avoid healthcare due to perceived inadequacy of pain management approaches (Biancarelli et al., 2019; Voon et al., 2015).”
BackgroundWheeler, A., Valerio, H., Cunningham, E. B., Martinello, M., Barocas, J. A., Colledge‐Frisby, S., Treloar, C., Amin, J., Henderson, C. R., Read, P. J., et al. (2022) · Drug and Alcohol Dependence · doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2022.109543 · Cited by 15
Hervera, B., Seo, G. Z., Bartholomew, T. S., Chueng, T. A., Suarez, E., Forrest, D. W., Hernandez, S., Rodriguez, A. E., Tookes, H. E., Doblecki‐Lewis, S., et al. (2023) · Addiction Science & Clinical Practice · doi:10.1186/s13722-023-00363-4 · Cited by 15
Kapadia, S. N., Aponte-Meléndez, Y., Rodriguez, A., Pai, M., Eckhardt, B. J., Marks, K., Fong, C., & Mateu‐Gelabert, P. (2023) · Harm Reduction Journal · doi:10.1186/s12954-023-00831-9 · Cited by 15
Macevicius, C., Pérez, D. G., Norton, A., Kolla, G., McGreevy, P. B., Selfridge, M., Kalicum, J., Hutchison, A., Urbanoski, K. A., Barker, B., et al. (2023) · Drugs Education Prevention and Policy · doi:10.1080/09687637.2023.2283383 · Cited by 15
“Non-prescriber models have been identified as particularly relevant given the barriers to health care services, stigma, and harmful care often experienced by people who use drugs (Biancarelli et al., 2019; Chan Carusone et al., 2019; Muncan et al., 2020; Paquette et al., 2018).”
Kimmel, S. D., Bazzi, A. R., & Barocas, J. A. (2020) · Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment · doi:10.1016/j.jsat.2020.108103 · Cited by 15
A Review of Unintended Pregnancy in Opioid-Using Women
Auerbach, S. L., Agbemenu, K., Ely, G. E., & Lorenz, R. A. (2021) · Journal of Addictions Nursing · doi:10.1097/jan.0000000000000396 · Cited by 15
“For example, evidence suggests women who use drugs avoid seeking healthcare because of fears of being turned in to law enforcement by health professionals (Biancarelli et al., 2019; Stengel, 2014; Swan et al., 2020).”
BackgroundSubstance Use Disorder as a Predictor of Skilled Nursing Facility Referral Failure
Waters, K., Handa, L., Caballero, B., Telahun, A., & Bann, M. A. (2022) · Journal of General Internal Medicine · doi:10.1007/s11606-022-07534-0 · Cited by 15
Moallef, S., Genberg, B. L., Hayashi, K., Mehta, S. H., Kirk, G. D., Choi, J., DeBeck, K., Kipke, M. D., Moore, R. D., Baum, M. K., et al. (2022) · Drug and Alcohol Dependence · doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2022.109633 · Cited by 15
“( Chou et al., 2011) Worry could also be related to fear and contribute to or exacerbate PWUD ’ s well-documented avoidance of healthcare services (Biancarelli et al., 2019; Drumm et al., 2005; van Boekel et al., 2013).”
Naloxone Distribution Models in the United States: A Scoping Review
Vadiei, N., Axon, D. R., & Eckert, B. (2024) · Substance Use & Addiction Journal · doi:10.1177/29767342241289008 · Cited by 15
Pearce, L. A., Borschmann, R., Young, J. T., & Kinner, S. A. (2023) · International Journal for Population Data Science · doi:10.23889/ijpds.v8i1.2116 · Cited by 15
Hardin, B., Graboyes, M., Kosty, D. B., & Cioffi, C. C. (2023) · Preventive Medicine Reports · doi:10.1016/j.pmedr.2023.102341 · Cited by 14
“Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, psychology and public health experts argued that the 3C model excluded important social contextual factors, such as the presence of racism, misinformation, and collective responsibility (Biancarelli et al., 2019; Braun and Clarke, 2006).”
BackgroundElkalla, I. H. R., El‐Gilany, A., Baklola, M. I., Terra, M., Aboeldahab, M., Sayed, S. E., & Elwasify, M. (2023) · BMC Psychiatry · doi:10.1186/s12888-023-05093-0 · Cited by 23
“All of this may be explained by the level of familiarity that individuals with substance use disorders have with their condition [40].”
BackgroundTalal, A. H., Jaanimägi, U., Dharia, A., & Dickerson, S. S. (2023) · Health Expectations · doi:10.1111/hex.13854 · Cited by 14
“24,33,41 Participants indicated that as they progress through substance use disorder treatment, they learned how to navigate, and in many cases mitigate, negative attitudes (Table 2).”
BackgroundExploring drug consumption rooms as ‘inclusion health interventions’: policy implications for Europe
Scher, B. D., Chrisinger, B. W., Humphreys, D. K., & Shorter, G. W. (2024) · Harm Reduction Journal · doi:10.1186/s12954-024-01099-3 · Cited by 15
“Understanding the ways in which clients experience DCRs helps to mitigate unintended consequences such as service avoidance or service discontinuation [10, 19, 73].”
Breaking the vicious cycle of delayed healthcare seeking for people who use drugs
Papalamprakopoulou, Z., Ntagianta, E., Triantafyllou, V., Kalamitsis, G., Dharia, A., Dickerson, S. S., Hatzakis, A. E., & Talal, A. H. (2025) · Harm Reduction Journal · doi:10.1186/s12954-025-01166-3 · Cited by 16
“[28] also found that PWUD formed stronger connections with the staff of community organizations compared to large health-care institutions.”
Assoumou, S. A., Paniagua, S. M., Gonzalez, P., Wang, J., Beckwith, C. G., White, L. F., Taylor, J. L., Coogan, K., Samet, J. H., & Linas, B. P. (2021) · AIDS and Behavior · doi:10.1007/s10461-021-03220-0 · Cited by 14
Estave, P. M., Jacobs, M. L., Rukstalis, M. R., Goforth, J., Stone, S. N., Choi, J. A., Barrett, J., Douglas, H. E., Oliver, J. B., Keating, M. K., et al. (2021) · Substance Abuse · doi:10.1080/08897077.2021.1915918 · Cited by 14
“Those with substance use disorders avoid healthcare because they feel stigmatized, which delays care.(18) Although the impact of PROUD on stigma was not quantitatively assessed, one student even noted how PROUD “debunked myths about opioids and people with OUD.”
BackgroundPatel, E. U., Solomon, S. S., Lucas, G. M., McFall, A. M., Tomori, C., Srikrishnan, A. K., Kumar, M. S., Laeyendecker, O. B., Celentano, D. D., Thomas, D. L., et al. (2021) · International Journal of Drug Policy · doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2021.103354 · Cited by 14
Knight, K. R. (2020) · Women s Reproductive Health · doi:10.1080/23293691.2020.1780400 · Cited by 14
Ali, F., Russell, C., Torres-Salbach, S., Lo, M., Bonn, M., Bardwell, G., Budau, J., Hyshka, E., & Rehm, J. T. (2025) · International Journal of Drug Policy · doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2025.104791 · Cited by 19
Gomes, T., Campbell, T. J., Martins, D., Paterson, J. M., Robertson, L., Juurlink, D. N., Mamdani, M., & Glazier, R. H. (2021) · PLoS Medicine · doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1003631 · Cited by 15
“While this could suggest that OAT recipients did not experience the same need for physician care during their period of provider loss, it is perhaps more likely that the negative experiences that people who use drugs have reported in hospital environments was a barrier to them seeking additional healthcare in this set…”
BackgroundSaleem, H. T., West, N., & Likindikoki, S. L. (2023) · BMC Psychiatry · doi:10.1186/s12888-023-05008-z · Cited by 14
“It is possible that the lower scores for enacted and anticipated stigma from healthcare providers stem from less engagement with health services or behavior modification and non-disclosure of drug use in healthcare settings to actively avoid stigma [40].”
BackgroundForchuk, C., Serrato, J., & Scott, L. (2024) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2024.1279477 · Cited by 13
Thomann, J., Vogt, S. B., Guessoum, A., Meyer, M., Vogel, M., Liechti, M. E., Luethi, D., & Duthaler, U. (2024) · Journal of Chromatography B · doi:10.1016/j.jchromb.2024.124104 · Cited by 13
Broady, T. R., Valerio, H., Alavi, M., Wheeler, A., Silk, D., Martinello, M., Conway, A., Milat, A., Dunlop, A. J., Murray, C., et al. (2024) · International Journal of Drug Policy · doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2024.104468 · Cited by 13
Hirshman, R., Hamilton, S., Walker, M., Ellis, A. R., Ivey, N., & Clifton, D. (2024) · Journal of Hospital Medicine · doi:10.1002/jhm.13472 · Cited by 14
Marquez, L. K., Cepeda, J., Bórquez, A., Strathdee, S. A., González‐Zúñiga, P., Fleiz, C., Rafful, C. M., Garfein, R. S., Kiene, S. M., Brodine, S. K., et al. (2020) · International Journal of Drug Policy · doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2020.102710 · Cited by 13
“, 2016), in part due to negative experiences and stigma (Biancarelli et al., 2019; von Hippel, Brener & Horwitz, 2018), both internalized and expressed by healthcare providers (Brener et al.”
BackgroundMarquez, L. K., Fleiz, C., Burgos, J. L., Cepeda, J., McIntosh, C., Garfein, R. S., Kiene, S. M., Brodine, S. K., Strathdee, S. A., & Martin, N. K. (2021) · Addiction · doi:10.1111/add.15456 · Cited by 13
Treating Opioid Use Disorder in General Medical Settings
(2021) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-80818-1 · Cited by 13
Trickey, A., Semchuk, N., Салюк, Т., Sazonova, Y., Varetska, O., Walker, J. G., Lim, A. G., Stone, J., & Vickerman, P. T. (2020) · Journal of the International AIDS Society · doi:10.1002/jia2.25608 · Cited by 13
“This situation is exacerbated by the ongoing stigma borne by both PWID and people living with HIV [35,36].”
BackgroundThe American Opioid Epidemic in Special Populations: Five Examples
Blanco, C., Ali, M. M., Beswick, A., Drexler, K. P. G., Hoffman, C., Jones, C. M., Wiley, T., & Coukell, A. J. (2020) · NAM Perspectives · doi:10.31478/202010b · Cited by 14
Stancil, S. L., Miller, M. K., Duello, A., Finocchario‐Kessler, S., Goggin, K., Winograd, R., & Hurley, E. A. (2021) · Harm Reduction Journal · doi:10.1186/s12954-021-00532-1 · Cited by 12
Moallef, S., Dale, L. M., Homayra, F., Zonneveld, C., Milloy, M., Nosyk, B., & Hayashi, K. (2022) · Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment · doi:10.1016/j.jsat.2022.108784 · Cited by 12
Exploring the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on syringe services programs in rural Kentucky
Glick, J. L., Grieb, S. M. D., Harris, S. J., Weir, B. W., Smith, K. C., Puryear, T., White, R. H., & Allen, S. T. (2022) · Harm Reduction Journal · doi:10.1186/s12954-022-00631-7 · Cited by 12
Boucher, L. M., Shoemaker, E. S., Liddy, C. E., Leonard, L. E., MacPherson, P. A., Presseau, J., Martin, A., Pineau, D., Lalonde, C., Diliso, N., et al. (2022) · International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-Being · doi:10.1080/17482631.2022.2082111 · Cited by 12
“In addition to typical barriers to healthcare access, such as transportation, participants faced extensive stigma based on their drug use, which is well-documented in the literature (Biancarelli et al., 2019; Paquette et al., 2018).”
BackgroundResultVogel, M., Meyer, M., Westenberg, J., Kormann, A., Simon, O., Fadlelseed, R. S. H., Kurmann, M., Bröer, R., Devaud, N., Sanwald, U., et al. (2023) · Harm Reduction Journal · doi:10.1186/s12954-023-00731-y · Cited by 11
“Patients may therefore be able to avoid stigmatisation associated with injection behaviour, which is a common experience for people who use drugs [24, 26, 27].”
BackgroundBromberg, D. J., Machavariani, E., Madden, L. M., Dumchev, K. V., LaMonaca, K., Earnshaw, V. A., Pykalo, I., Filippovych, M., Haddad, M. S., Дворяк, С., et al. (2024) · Journal of the International AIDS Society · doi:10.1002/jia2.26202 · Cited by 12
Doran, J., Hope, V. D., Wright, T., Scott, J., Ciccarone, D., & Harris, M. (2021) · Drug and Alcohol Review · doi:10.1111/dar.13389 · Cited by 11
“These and other barriers have been widely reported globally [43–45].”
Williams, L. D., Lee, E., Kristensen, K., Mackesy‐Amiti, M. E., & Boodram, B. (2023) · Drug and Alcohol Dependence · doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2023.109782 · Cited by 11
Forchuk, C., Serrato, J., & Scott, L. (2023) · Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention in Canada · doi:10.24095/hpcdp.43.7.04 · Cited by 11
Corcorran, M. A., Scott, J. D., Naveira, M. C. M., & Easterbrook, P. (2023) · BMC Health Services Research · doi:10.1186/s12913-023-09777-x · Cited by 11
“There were also no specific trainings in cultural sensitivities and competencies in addressing stigma, given the common feedback from clients from marginalized groups such as PWID and pris-oners of experiencing discrimination from healthcare staff [75–77].”
BackgroundBartholomew, T. S., Plesons, M., Serota, D. P., Alonso, E., Metsch, L. R., Feaster, D. J., Ucha, J., Suarez, E., Forrest, D. W., Chueng, T. A., et al. (2024) · Addiction Science & Clinical Practice · doi:10.1186/s13722-024-00447-9 · Cited by 11
“…to bring comprehensive HIV prevention to PWID on their own terms in a true harm reduction approach—meeting them where they are, both mentally and physically, in a respectful environment, overcoming the intransigent stigma [109, 110] that permeates the tra-dititional healthcare system [111].”
BackgroundSutherland, R., King, C., Karlsson, A., Treloar, C., Broady, T. R., Chandrasena, U., Salom, C., Dietze, P., & Peacock, A. (2024) · Drug and Alcohol Review · doi:10.1111/dar.13846 · Cited by 11
Priest, K. C., Englander, H. L., & McCarty, D. W. (2021) · General Hospital Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.genhosppsych.2021.02.007 · Cited by 11
Baldwin, A., Sileo, K. M., Huynh, T. A., Olfers, A., Woo, C. J., Greene, S. L., Casillas, G. L., & Taylor, B. S. (2022) · Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved · doi:10.1353/hpu.2022.0074 · Cited by 11
Winiker, A. K., Schneider, K. E., White, R. H., O’Rourke, A., Grieb, S. M. D., & Allen, S. T. (2023) · Harm Reduction Journal · doi:10.1186/s12954-023-00795-w · Cited by 11
Strathdee, S. A., Abramovitz, D. A., Vera, A., Stamos-Buesig, T., Vera, C. F., Artamónova, I., Logan, J., Patterson, T. L., Servin, A. E., & Bazzi, A. R. (2023) · Open Forum Infectious Diseases · doi:10.1093/ofid/ofad392 · Cited by 11
“Our findings clearly indicate that efforts are needed to support direct provision of COVID-19 vaccines through SSPs whenever possible, instead of relying on referrals to external services that may be less known, trusted, or accessible [2, 31].”
Reachable Moment: Hospital-Based Interventions
Weinstein, Z., & Englander, H. L. (2021) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-80818-1_4 · Cited by 10
Patel, E. U., Solomon, S. S., McFall, A. M., Menezes, N. P., Tomori, C., Srikrishnan, A. K., Kumar, M. S., Celentano, D. D., Lucas, G. M., & Mehta, S. H. (2022) · AIDS · doi:10.1097/qad.0000000000003297 · Cited by 10
“Drawing from existing stigma frameworks [31–34], the observed associations may be partly mediated by drug use practices [18,35,36], depression and mental distress [10,37–39], social isolation (self-isolation and social rejection) [40,41], healthcare avoidance [42,43], and ultimately low ART use and adherence.”
BackgroundFebres‐Cordero, S., Shasanmi, R. O., & Sherman, A. D. F. (2023) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1277562 · Cited by 10
“This mistrust has come from years of abuse and neglect (18, 29, 30, 33).”
BackgroundDalba Got Back? Use of Dalbavancin for the Treatment of Vertebral Osteomyelitis
Streifel, A. C., Strnad, L. C., Sikka, M. K., Varley, C. D., Makadia, J. T., Sukerman, E. S., Douglass, A. H., Mayer, H. S., Young, K. M., & Lewis, J. S. (2024) · Open Forum Infectious Diseases · doi:10.1093/ofid/ofae070 · Cited by 10
“PWUD experience significant stigma within the healthcare system [17, 18], including among ID physicians [19], despite data demonstrating successful completion of outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy in this patient population [20].”
BackgroundLenton, E., Kagan, D., Seear, K., Mulcahy, S., Farrugia, A., valentine, K., Edwards, M., & Jeffcote, D. (2024) · Sociology of Health & Illness · doi:10.1111/1467-9566.13776 · Cited by 12
Havelka, E. M., Sanfilippo, J. E., Juneau, P. L., Sherman, G. T., Cooper, D., & Leggio, L. (2024) · Alcohol and Alcoholism · doi:10.1093/alcalc/agae057 · Cited by 11
'Zombie drugs': Dehumanising news frames and public stigma towards people who use drugs
Sumnall, H. R., Holland, A., Atkinson, A., Montgomery, C., Nicholls, J. Q., & Maynard, O. (2025) · International Journal of Drug Policy · doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2025.104714 · Cited by 10
“…can lead to poor mental health, harmful coping strategies, and label avoidance which act as barriers to timely treatment seeking and positive outcomes (Biancarelli, et al., 2019; Fontesse, et al., 2020; Lancaster, Seear, & Ritter, 2017; Long & Jepsen, 2023; Neale, Nettleton, & Pickering, 2010).”
The role of stigma in impeding implementation of harm reduction services in San Francisco
Akiba, C. F., Megerian, C. E., Chung, E. O., Morris, T., Wenger, L. D., Suen, L. W., Lambdin, B. H., & Kral, A. H. (2025) · SSM - Qualitative Research in Health · doi:10.1016/j.ssmqr.2025.100593 · Cited by 11
“…stigma against PWUD from healthcare providers is abundantly detailed in the literature, with negative attitudes leading to suboptimal quality of healthcare (Biancarelli et al., 2019; Miller-Lloyd et al., 2020; Simon et al., 2020; van Boekel et al., 2013) and poorer outcomes (Jaibat et al., 2023).”
Marotta, P. L., Abbas, B. T., Stringer, K. L., Huang, D., Schnaidt, J., Goddard‐Eckrich, D., El‐Bassel, N., & Gilbert, L. (2021) · International Journal of Drug Policy · doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2021.103321 · Cited by 10
Troberg, K., Lundqvist, K., Hansson, H., Håkansson, A., & Dahlman, D. (2022) · Substance Abuse Treatment Prevention and Policy · doi:10.1186/s13011-022-00434-w · Cited by 10
“Barriers to healthcare seeking among people who use drugs (PWUD) have previously been identified as experience of dehumanization [23] and stigmatization [24–27] leading to avoidance or delaying healthcare seeking [23, 26] with a high risk of negative health consequences [25, 26].”
BackgroundCorcorran, M. A., Austin, E. J., Behrends, C. N., Briggs, E. S., Frost, M. C., Juarez, A. M., Frank, N. D., Healy, E., Prohaska, S. M., LaKosky, P. A., et al. (2022) · Journal of Addiction Medicine · doi:10.1097/adm.0000000000001036 · Cited by 10
Jiang, N., Bruneau, J., Makarenko, I., Minoyan, N., Zang, G., Høj, S. B., Larney, S., & Martel‐Laferrière, V. (2023) · International Journal of Drug Policy · doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2023.103954 · Cited by 10
Martin, A. K., Perryman, T., Bernstein, J., Taylor, J. L., Cruz, R., Muroff, J. R., Samet, J. H., & Assoumou, S. A. (2023) · Drug and Alcohol Dependence Reports · doi:10.1016/j.dadr.2023.100156 · Cited by 11
“Reasons for low uptake include imited information available to eligible patients, stigma, care fragmenation, and competing priorities ( Assoumou et al., 2021 ; Bazzi et al., 018 , 2019 ; Biancarelli et al., 2019 ; Chan et al., 2021 ; Childs et al., 019 ).”
Socioeconomic and psychosocial determinants of substance misuse – a national perspective
Stephenson, L., van den Heuvel, C., & Byard, R. W. (2023) · Forensic Science Medicine and Pathology · doi:10.1007/s12024-023-00702-6 · Cited by 12
“Unfortunately, a large proportion of people who inject drugs (PWID) also experience significant stigma when engaging with healthcare providers [67].”
Fetene, D. M., Higgs, P., Nielsen, S., Djordjevic, F., & Dietze, P. (2020) · The Medical Journal of Australia · doi:10.5694/mja2.50659 · Cited by 10
What one pandemic can teach us in facing another
El‐Sadr, W. (2020) · AIDS · doi:10.1097/qad.0000000000002636 · Cited by 10
Addiction stigma and opioid use in chronic non‐cancer pain management in Nigeria
Nelson, E.-U. E. (2023) · Sociology of Health & Illness · doi:10.1111/1467-9566.13718 · Cited by 9
Rodger, L., Cygler, J., & Pinto, A. D. (2024) · The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse · doi:10.1080/00952990.2024.2350696 · Cited by 10
“Expert care could lead to more frequent re-presentation or re-admission to a center that represents a safe space (69), mitigating known delays in seeking care related to stigma (70).”
Telehealth to increase healthcare access; perspectives of people who use drugs
Papalamprakopoulou, Z., Ntagianta, E., Triantafyllou, V., Kalamitsis, G., Dharia, A., Dickerson, S. S., Hatzakis, A. E., & Talal, A. H. (2024) · BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making · doi:10.1186/s12911-024-02718-6 · Cited by 10
“Meeting the provider “up close” or “face-to-face” ( i.e ., in person) helps foster a trusting relationship and to overcome PWUDs’ mistrust of the healthcare sys-tem related to long-standing stigma [3, 56].”
BackgroundWeger, R., Weinstock, N., Jawa, R., & Wilson, J. D. (2024) · Journal of General Internal Medicine · doi:10.1007/s11606-024-09129-3 · Cited by 10
“15,61 Participants from rural areas felt particularly stigmatized from healthcare workers where they lived, which subsequently prevented them from accessing harm reduction resources.”
Bacterial and fungal infections in persons who inject drugs
Masters, J., Goodman‐Meza, D., Russell, D. M., Marks, L. R., McCreary, E. K., Jacka, B. P., Seear, K., Davis, J. S., Matthews, G. V., Martinello, M., et al. (2025) · Clinical Microbiology Reviews · doi:10.1128/cmr.00162-23 · Cited by 9
“Implementa tion and evaluation of stigma-reduction interventions in healthcare settings could be particularly beneficial, given that stigmatizing experiences are a key factor contributing to avoidance or delay of seeking medical care among persons who inject drugs (366).”
Jones, A. A., Schneider, K. E., Falade-Nwulia, O. O., Sterner, G., Tobin, K. E., & Latkin, C. A. (2022) · Journal of Psychoactive Drugs · doi:10.1080/02791072.2022.2129886 · Cited by 9
“While HCV treatment is recommended for all PWID regardless of current drug use, PWID may avoid health care systems due to systemic stigmas, such as refusals of care, internalized stigma, such as shame, and social stigma, including verbal abuse (Biancarelli et al. 2019; Cunningham et al. 2018; Grebely et al. 2017; Nort…”
BackgroundLi, J., Wang, R., He, J., Wang, L., & Li, L. (2023) · BMC Psychiatry · doi:10.1186/s12888-023-04856-z · Cited by 9
“One study found that many participants felt that they were treated unfairly or discriminated against for injecting drug use in healthcare [49].”
BackgroundDiPlacido, J., Fallahi, C. R., & Daigle, C. D. (2023) · Cogent Psychology · doi:10.1080/23311908.2023.2218258 · Cited by 9
“…access to treatment are needed, despite barriers that can include a lack of access because of the burden on the healthcare system due to the pandemic (Jemberie et al., 2020) or because of stigma and discrimination that may deter sexual minorities from seeking treatment (Biancarelli et al., 2019).”
BackgroundParoz, S., Monnat, M., Panese, F., Saraga, M., & Daeppen, J. (2023) · Journal of Addictive Diseases · doi:10.1080/10550887.2023.2227307 · Cited by 9
Using Telecare to Treat Opioid Use Disorder: An Ethnographic Study in New York During COVID-19
Caulfield, C. (2021) · Contemporary Drug Problems · doi:10.1177/00914509211046705 · Cited by 10
“…found in the context of addiction therapy, including evasion, hiding, and deception of healthcare providers in order to avoid harsh criminal penalties (Biancarelli et al., 2019), as well as resisting drug surveillance technologies that have been dubbed “technologies of suspicion” (Campbell, 2004).”
BackgroundEastment, M. C., Gupta, A., James, J. R., Richardson, B. A., Pinder, L. F., Kim, H. N., Wald, A., & Tsui, J. I. (2022) · Substance Abuse · doi:10.1080/08897077.2021.2010257 · Cited by 9
“Individuals with substance use-related diagnoses are at increased risk for morbidity and mortality,(3) and are less likely to be engaged in care.(4) Substance use, especially illicit drug use, is a highly stigmatized condition.”
BackgroundWheeler, A., Masters, J., Pradhan, A., Roth, J. M., Degenhardt, L. J., Dore, G. J., Matthews, G. V., Cunningham, E. B., Peacock, A., Colledge‐Frisby, S., et al. (2025) · Open Forum Infectious Diseases · doi:10.1093/ofid/ofaf108 · Cited by 8
“Implementation of stigma-reduction interventions in healthcare settings could be particularly beneficial, given that stigmatizing experiences in such contexts is a key factor contributing to avoidance or delay of seeking medical care among PWID [ 38].”
Are we ending the HIV epidemic among persons who inject drugs?: key findings from 19 US cities
Baugher, A. R., Wejnert, C., Kanny, D., Broz, D., Feelemyer, J. P., Hershow, R. B., Burnett, J. C., Chapin-Bardales, J., Haynes, M., Finlayson, T., et al. (2025) · AIDS · doi:10.1097/qad.0000000000004249 · Cited by 8
Brown, P. C. M., Button, D. A., Bethune, D., Kelly, E. A., Tierney, H. R., Nerurkar, R. M., Nicolaidis, C., Harrison, R. A., & Levander, X. A. (2022) · Journal of General Internal Medicine · doi:10.1007/s11606-022-07494-5 · Cited by 8
Makeshift medicine is a response to US health system failures
Kelly, P. J. A., Biello, K. B., & Hughto, J. M. W. (2023) · Nature Human Behaviour · doi:10.1038/s41562-023-01575-z · Cited by 8
Exploring stigmatization in digital newspaper coverage of substance use disorder
BİLİŞLİ, Y., Keser, İ., Erdogan, A. R., Çakmak, F., Kayan, F., & Saygın, N. (2024) · Heliyon · doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e28694 · Cited by 8
“Negative stereotypes about individuals with SUD can evoke fear, pity, and even anger in others [3,4].”
BackgroundKhazaee-Pool, M., Naghibi, S. A., Pashaei, T., & Ponnet, K. S. (2024) · Addiction Science & Clinical Practice · doi:10.1186/s13722-024-00472-8 · Cited by 8
“Further research and needs assessments are required to identify additional strategies for addressing addiction-related stigma [42, 47, 56].”
BackgroundMarcovitz, D. E., Sidelnik, S. A., Smith, M., & Suzuki, J. (2020) · Academic Psychiatry · doi:10.1007/s40596-020-01196-y · Cited by 8
Assessment of stigma and prejudice in the organization of care networks for drug users
dos Santos, E. O., de Pinho, L. B., da Silva, A. B., & Eslabão, A. D. (2021) · Revista Brasileira de Enfermagem · doi:10.1590/0034-7167-2021-0135 · Cited by 8
Banta‐Green, C. J., Owens, M. D., Williams, J. R., Sears, J. M., Floyd, A. S., Williams‐Gilbert, W., & Kingston, S. (2022) · Addiction Science & Clinical Practice · doi:10.1186/s13722-022-00315-4 · Cited by 8
“Individuals with OUD also experience stigma when presenting to hospitals and primary care [38, 39].”
BackgroundPatient perspectives on naloxone receipt in the emergency department: a qualitative exploration
Lowenstein, M., Sangha, H. K., Spadaro, A., Perrone, J., Delgado, M. K., & Agarwal, A. K. (2022) · Harm Reduction Journal · doi:10.1186/s12954-022-00677-7 · Cited by 8
“Stigmatizing interactions in health care have also been cited as a barrier to receiving naloxone at pharmacies [32] and to care-seeking more broadly among people who use drugs [45, 46].”
BackgroundResponding to Ontario’s Overdose Crisis in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic
Gomes, T., Kitchen, S. A., Campbell, T. J., Murray, R., Leece, P., & Kolla, G. (2022) · Healthcare Quarterly · doi:10.12927/hcq.2022.26896 · Cited by 8
“Furthermore, people who use drugs report widespread experiences of stigma and discrimination within the healthcare system (Biancarelli et al. 2019; Garpenhag and Dahlman 2021; Muncan et al. 2020).”
BackgroundKing, C., Vega, T. A., Button, D. A., Nicolaidis, C., Gregg, J. L., & Englander, H. L. (2021) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0247951 · Cited by 8
“Both findings build on existing literature that show addiction consult services, in non-pandemic times, help build trusting patient-provider relationships [17], improve engagement in substance use treatment after hospital discharge [26], and help patients determine and pursue their healthcare goals [18, 27].”
BackgroundCorcorran, M. A., Stewart, J. C., Lan, K. F., Gupta, A., Glick, S. N., Seshadri, C., Koomalsingh, K. J., Gibbons, E. F., Harrington, R. D., Dhanireddy, S., et al. (2022) · Open Forum Infectious Diseases · doi:10.1093/ofid/ofac150 · Cited by 8
Tomson, C., Neuschatz, R., & da Silva, D. T. (2024) · Nursing Outlook · doi:10.1016/j.outlook.2024.102248 · Cited by 7
Hill, K., Minahan-Rowley, R., Biegacki, E. T., Heimer, R., & Sue, K. L. (2024) · Harm Reduction Journal · doi:10.1186/s12954-024-01052-4 · Cited by 7
“This is especially critical given that PWUD may wait until their condition becomes serious before seeking medical care [29, 31, 32].”
BackgroundMacIsaac, M. B., Papaluca, T., McDonald, L., Craigie, A., Edwards, A., Layton, C., Gibson, A., Winter, R., Iyer, K., Sim, A., et al. (2024) · Clinical Infectious Diseases · doi:10.1093/cid/ciae471 · Cited by 7
Metadata
- Authors
- Biancarelli, D. L., Biello, K. B., Childs, E., Drainoni, M., Salhaney, P., Edeza, A., Mimiaga, M. J., Saitz, R., & Bazzi, A. R.
- Affiliations
- Boston University (US)
- Brown University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Bazzi, Angela R.
- ORCID
- Venue
- Drug and Alcohol Dependence
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2019-05
- Volume
- 198
- Pages
- 80-86
- ISSN
- 0376-8716 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC6521691
- OpenAlex
- W2921016611
- Cited by
- 524
- References
- 79
- Citations by year
- 2026: 51 · 2025: 92 · 2024: 109 · 2023: 79 · 2022: 73 · 2021: 69 · 2020: 42 · 2019: 8
- FWCI
- 36.54
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Drug and Alcohol Dependence (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- Providence/Boston Center for AIDS Research (P30AI042853)
- NIH/NIDA (K01DA043412)
- BU Peter Paul Career Development Professorship
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › HIV, Drug Use, Sexual Risk
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Opioid Use Disorder Treatment
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
- Keywords
- people who inject drugs, stigma, health care utilization, dehumanization, community organizations, syringe services programs, HIV risk behavior, provider training, integrated care
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Female, Health Personnel, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, New England, Patient Acceptance of Health Care, HIV Infections, Substance Abuse, Intravenous, Drug Users, Young Adult, Social Stigma
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review