Treatment for incarcerated populations: Opioid Agonist Treatment (OAT)
Kate Johnson, Director, Clinical Services, Canadian Addiction Treatment Centres
An expert discusses Opioid Agonist Treatment (OAT) Ontarians who have experienced incarceration are at a disproportionately higher risk of death by opioid toxicity than the general population. Individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD) released directly from court following incarceration potentially face even greater risks.
OAT is often continued or initiated when an offender with OUD is incarcerated in a provincial facility. For those who have been on OAT, release to the community creates challenges to the continuity of this essential medical treatment which is necessary to prevent overdose and return to both the use of illicit substances and criminal activity. This is especially challenging for those who are released directly from court since they do not have adequate advance planning to ensure the continuity of care of their OAT.
Other barriers can include:
- OAT providers’ inability to obtain accurate information from the correctional center to safely continue treatment
- Lack of government-approved identification or Health Card which is required to access medical services and initiate/continue treatment in the community
- Lack of funds or drug plan coverage (public drug plan or other) to cover the costs of OAT medication
Access and linkage to low-barrier, evidence-based treatment for OUD must be integrated into the criminal justice system—both during incarceration and immediately upon release—to prevent unnecessary loss of life, protect local communities and reduce recidivism in Ontario.
Speaker Bio
Kate Johnson
Director of Clinical Services, Canadian Addiction Treatment Centres (CATC)
Kate spent her early career working in the federal correctional system. From there, she spent time working with youth involved in the criminal justice system. After seeing the link between traumatic experiences, mental health, substance use and incarceration, Kate retrained to become an addiction counselor, primarily working in Eastern Ontario.
Kate joined Canadian Addiction Treatment Centres in 2015 in a leadership role and moved to the Director position in 2018. She is responsible for clinical services and operations in 74 Treatment Centres in the Province of Ontario that deliver addiction care to nearly 15,000 patients a month. Driven by a personal passion for improving access to high-quality, cost-effective opioid agonist treatment, particularly in rural communities, Kate is committed to changing the trajectory of the opioid/fentanyl epidemic in Canada.