Peer coaches boost opioid treatment in rural areas

This study looked at whether having a peer support specialist (a trained person who has been through similar struggles) helps people with opioid use disorder begin and continue taking buprenorphine, a medication for opioid use disorder. Ninety adults from rural South Carolina who were new to a mobile health clinic took part. The study compared them to past patients who did not have a peer coach. The goal was to see if the peer coach improved treatment start rates and how well people stayed on their medication for three months.