Changes in Opioid Agonist Treatment Practice in Germany during the COVID-19 Pandemic: What Have Physicians Done, and What Would They Like to Keep Doing?

Abstract

<b><i>Introduction:</i></b> Opioid agonist treatment (OAT) is the most common and most effective treatment option for persons with opioid use disorders (OUD). In Germany, the prescription of OAT medications is regulated by the Narcotic Drugs Prescription Ordinance. With the introduction of restrictions to contain the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the German OAT regulations have been amended to ensure a legal continuation of OAT for people with OUD. In this study, we aimed to examine the use of the OAT regulations in practice, the experience made by physicians prescribing OAT medications, and their perspective on OAT regulations. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> Between September and December 2021, a questionnaire on the current situation and potential changes in the provision of OAT during the COVID-19 pandemic was sent out to 2,416 German physicians prescribing OAT medications. Differences between physicians with and without addiction medicine certification were analyzed. <b><i>Results:</i></b> The response rate of physicians was 22.8%. Their average age was 57.4 (±10.1) years, and 62.3% were male. During the COVID-19 pandemic, take-home periods for stable patients have been extended by 48.2% of physicians, and 52.6% would like to maintain this prescribing practice in the future. Most physicians (71.6%) indicated that patients handled the extended take-home prescriptions predominantly responsibly. A total of 71.8% of the physicians generally did not use video consultation. A corona pandemic-related switch of the OST medication to depot buprenorphine injection did rather not occur, as 71.2% reported no patients treated with depot buprenorphine, and only 2.6% switched first-time or more patients to depot buprenorphine due to the COVID-19 pandemic. <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> The corona situation opened up opportunities for physicians and patients and enabled change processes in OAT. Physicians had positive experiences implementing expanded take-home prescriptions for stable patients. Video contacts rarely took place, suggesting resistance to digital consultation. The number of depot buprenorphine prescriptions has not increased substantially since the pandemic’s beginning and has remained at low levels. Further research is needed to assess to what extent the changes in OAT will be maintained over time and whether they will also lead to long-term benefits for OAT patients.