Rural communities in America face unique challenges when it comes to accessing MAT. A significant challenge rural communities have when it comes to MAT is lack of infrastructure and general workforce to support it. MAT providers in these settings report concerns about time constraints, the lack of behavioral health and psychosocial services in rural communities, as well as medication misuse between patients. Three different states are using unique methods to integrate MAT into healthcare, with the goal making it more accessible to rural populations. Click on the chart to view it.
So what can we learn from how these states are approaching MAT?
- They are all using collaborative approaches. Agencies that provide medication are combining efforts with behavioral health agencies.
- They are using MAT to help treat the whole person. The Colorado health group uses services like physical therapy and chiropractic interventions, in addition to MAT, to help treat individuals suffering from chronic pain and OUD.
- They are getting creative. Rural North Carolina is using technology to reach individuals that may not have otherwise been able to get MAT.
To read more about this topic, please visit this article.
For SAMHSA’s list of Buprenorphine Treatment Practitioner Locations, click here.
Miller Temple, K., MD. (2018, March 21). What’s MAT Got to Do with It? Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder in Rural America. Retrieved from https://www.ruralhealthinfo.org/rural-monitor/medication-assisted-treatment/
Dipzinski, T. (2018, March 15). New Horizons Substance Use Recovery Network. Retrieved from https://www.ruralhealthinfo.org/project-examples/1006