Melody Rachel Konadu Frempong, MSW

Research Highlights

What’s the question your research is trying to answer?

What are the attitudes and perceptions towards peer distribution of naloxone as a harm reduction strategy? What are the implementation barriers to the naloxone distribution?

Why did you choose this topic? Who did you work with?

This topic was chosen in order to examine the implementations challenges of naloxone because although harm reduction strategies have been implemented for over a decade in Spain, overdose death was still relatively high in Catalonia. Also, most research on harm reduction focused on needle and syringe programs and methadone treatment and only a few examine the naloxone program. Importantly the peer distribution of the naloxone program allows substance users to help themselves and existing research have proved that peer-based interventions are effective so I wanted to explore it. This was an individual project I did as a requirement for the completion of my degree in M.A public Policy.

What conclusions came out of the research?

Stigma still remains a barrier(both self and public stigma) to the implementation to harm reduction. Also, the existing harm reduction strategies were too generalized and did not factor in the needs of women, hence the need for a gender mainstreaming approach towards harm reduction programs. Finally, the study found that harm reduction provides social and peer support, educates, and trains substance users which helps them to improve their health and wellbeing while empowering PWUDs that they can save lives and also reduce their risks of overdose death .