Race-based equity in substance use services

Key Findings

• The number of studies focusing on evaluated substance use services (treatment or harm reduction) for racialized communities were limited; the majority of the literature focused on documenting inequities, discussing barriers and facilitators in accessing services, or offered general recommendations without action.
• Findings pointed to a few imbalances in the literature: a focus on treatment and limited discussion on harm reduction; frequent reference to culturally-informed practices/skills development and limited reference to explicit anti-racist approaches; as well as a primary focus on service or practice development and a secondary focus on staff development.
• The main equity components in substance use services described in included documents were:
  • Integrating culturally-informed approaches in planning and delivery services, representing four main themes:
    • Holistic care that includes the individual, kinship/family, and community; representation in staff/services; spirituality or religiosity; and language.
  • Leveraging community strengths.
  • Building or strengthening staff capacity and skills (a secondary but emerging focus)

(author introduction)