Interventions to reduce stigma among health care providers working with substance users

Key take-home messages

• The attitudes and behaviours of practitioners have been linked to a variety of clinical outcomes in different patient groups.
• The prevalence of stigma among health care providers towards people who use drugs is well-documented in the literature and can result in barriers to healthcare access and poor health outcomes.
• There are limited evidence-based interventions to reduce stigma among health care providers who work with substance users.
• The majority of identified interventions are educational, and appear to target stigma at a structural level; these include specialized training for health care students and for professionals who work directly with people who use drugs.

• Determinants of Health
  • Health services
  • Stigma/discrimination
• Population(s)
  • People who use drugs
  • General HIV+ population
  • General HIV- population