Seyed Ramin RadfarCornelis A.J. De JongAli FarhoudianMohsen EbrahimiParnian RafeiMehrnoosh VahidiMasud YunesianChristos KouimtsidisShalini ArunogiriOmid MassahAbbas DeylamizadehKathleen T. BradyAnja BusseMarc N. PotenzaHamed EkhtiariAlexander Mario BaldacchinoAdrian Octavian AbagiuFranck David Noel AbounaMohamed Hassan AhmedBasma Al-ansariFeda Mahmmoud Abu Al-khairMandhar Humaid AlmaqbaliAtul AmbekarHossein Mohaddes ArdabiliSidharth AryaVictor Olufolahan LasebikanMurad Ali AyasrehDebasish BasuZoubir BenmebarekRoshan BhadMario BlaiseNicolas BonnetJennifer BraschBarbara BroersJenna L. ButnerMoses CamilleriGiovanna CampelloGiuseppe CarraIvan CelicFatemeh ChalabianlooAbhishek ChaturvediJosé de Jesús Eduardo Noyola CherpitelKelly J. ClarkMelissa Anne CydersErnesto de BernardisJohn Edward DerryNaveen Kumar DhaguduPavla DolezalovaGeert DomAdrian John DunlopMahmoud Mamdouh ElhabibyHussien ElkholyNsidibe Francis EssienGhandi Ilias FarahMarica FerriGeorgios D. FlorosCatherine FriedmanClara Hidalgo FuderananGilberto GerraAbhishek GhoshMaka GogiaIlias A. GrammatikopoulosPaolo GrandinettiAmira GuirguisDavid GutniskyPaul Steven HaberPeyman Hassani-AbharianZahra HooshyariIslam Ibrahim Mokhtar IbrahimHada Fong ha IeongRegina Nova IndradewiShelly IskandarShobhit JainSandi JamesSeyyed Mohammad hossein JavadiKeun Ho JoeDarius JokubonisAcka Tushevska JovanovaRama Mohamed KamalAlexander Ivanov KantchelovPreethy KathiresanGary KatzmanPaul KawaleAudrey Margaret KernFelix Henrique Paim KesslerSung Gon Sue KimAnn Marie KimballZeljko KljucevicKristiana SisteRoneet LevHae Kook LeeAiste LengvenyteShaul Lev-ranGeni Seseja MabelyaMohamed Ali El MahiJ. Maphisa MaphisaIcro MaremmaniLaura MasferrerOrlagh McCambridgeGarrett Gregory McGovernPusan National University Yangsan HospitalIranian National Center for Addiction StudiesCollege of Medicine, University of IbadanMichael G. DeGroote School of MedicineSchool of Public HealthSchool of Advanced Technologies in MedicineSwansea University Medical SchoolSurrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation TrustLaureate Institute for Brain ResearchThe University of Sydney School of MedicinePandit Bhagwat Dayal Sharma University of Health SciencesMelaka-Manipal Medical College, Manipal UniversityNárodní Ústav Duševního Zdraví, KlecanyPsychiatric Hospital Vrap?eUnited Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, AustriaUniversity of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation SciencesMinistry of Health OmanUniversité de Yaoundé IUniversitas PadjadjaranUniversitas Indonesia, RSUPN Dr. Cipto MangunkusumoVilniaus UniversitetasAl-Ahliyya Amman UniversityEuropean Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug AddictionOspedale Santa Chiara PisaHaukeland UniversitetssjukehusCUNY School of MedicineSouthern Health and Social Care TrustTehran University of Medical SciencesThe University of SydneyMaterials and Energy Research Centre IranIndiana University-Purdue University IndianapolisMedical University of South CarolinaUniversity of TehranUniversity of BotswanaYale School of MedicineUniversiti Malaysia SabahAin Shams UniversityRadboud UniversiteitAristotle University of ThessalonikiAin Shams University, Faculty of MedicineScripps Mercy HospitalUniversiteit AntwerpenUniversità degli Studi di Milano-BicoccaBrown UniversityEastern HealthSchool of MedicineHôpitaux Universitaires de GenèveUniversitat de GironaAll India Institute of Medical Sciences, New DelhiUniversidade Federal do Rio Grande do SulJane & Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human BehaviorTel Aviv UniversityThe Catholic University of KoreaUniversidad de Buenos AiresMashhad University of Medical Sciences, School of MedicineThe Mount Sinai Medical CenterPostgraduate Institute of Medical Education & Research, ChandigarhChatham HouseAġenzija SedqaOrganization Against DrugsAddiction medicine clinicDivision for OperationsAddiction Medicine ClinicAddiction medicine clinicAddiction medicine clinicHayat Center for Treatment and Psycho-social RehabilitationNational Narcotics Board of IndonesiaSerT LentiniSerenity Vista Addiction Treatment CenterAddiction Crisis SolutionsCommunity Health WorkAddiction medicine clinicPriority Medical ClinicIsrael Center on AddictionFuderanan Mental Health ClinicSobriety Centers of New HampshireNaufar InstituteAl-Amal Psychiatric HospitalNational Center for Mental HealthGeorgian Harm Reduction NetworkAfrican Institute for Development PolicyESIC Medical CollegeDrug and Alcohol Clinical ServicesRebirth Charity Society NGORéseau de prévention des addictions (RESPADD)Marmottan Medical CenterInstitute for Cognitive Science StudiesPublic Health Institute of Split-Dalmatia CountyRepublican Centre for Addictive DisordersHeritage Institute of Medical SciencesKantchelov ClinicCenter for Research and Information on Substance AbuseASL TeramoNational Institute for Infectious Diseases2022-08-042022-08-042021-04-29Frontiers in Psychiatry. Vol.12, (2021)166406402-s2.0-85106509698https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/20.500.14594/78276Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted people with substance use disorders (SUDs) worldwide, and healthcare systems have reorganized their services in response to the pandemic. Methods: One week after the announcement of the COVID-19 as a pandemic, in a global survey, 177 addiction medicine professionals described COVID-19-related health responses in their own 77 countries in terms of SUD treatment and harm reduction services. The health responses were categorized around (1) managerial measures and systems, (2) logistics, (3) service providers, and (4) vulnerable groups. Results: Respondents from over 88% of countries reported that core medical and psychiatric care for SUDs had continued; however, only 56% of countries reported having had any business continuity plan, and 37.5% of countries reported shortages of methadone or buprenorphine supplies. Participants of 41% of countries reported partial discontinuation of harm-reduction services such as needle and syringe programs and condom distribution. Fifty-seven percent of overdose prevention interventions and 81% of outreach services were also negatively impacted. Conclusions: Participants reported that SUD treatment and harm-reduction services had been significantly impacted globally early during the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on our findings, we highlight several issues and complications resulting from the pandemic concerning people with SUDs that should be tackled more efficiently during the future waves or similar pandemics. The issues and potential strategies comprise the following: (1) helping policymakers to generate business continuity plans, (2) maintaining the use of evidence-based interventions for people with SUDs, (3) being prepared for adequate medication supplies, (4) integrating harm reduction programs with other treatment modalities, and (5) having specific considerations for vulnerable groups such as immigrants and refugees.Mahidol UniversityMedicineArticleSCOPUS10.3389/fpsyt.2021.639393