The framework for the Vancouver SIF evaluation was designed prior to the SIF's opening and involved a number of methodological approaches. In light of the lack of existing quantitative efficacy data [17 (link)], the existence of ethical concerns [22 ], and an awareness that a non-randomized studies may be vulnerable to substantial selection biases [23 (link)], the Vancouver SIF evaluation is primarily structured around a prospective cohort design that involves the longitudinal measurement of a number of outcomes including blood-borne infection and overdose incidence, risk behavior, drug use practices, such as public drug use, and health services use.
The Vancouver SIF evaluation is somewhat unique because of the availability of a number of pre-existing data sources. These data sources include the community health and safety evaluation (CHASE) cohort, which is a community recruited virtual cohort of Downtown Eastside residents that prospectively and retrospectively examines health service use in the community by linking to administrative health record databases. In addition, the Vancouver Injection Drug Users Study (VIDUS) is an ongoing prospective cohort study of injection drug users that involves semi-annual serology of HIV and HCV as well as a semi-annual questionnaire [24 (link)]. VIDUS and CHASE allow for the description of IDUs in the community who are using Insite and a comparison between those that are and are not using the service.
In addition, in order to augment these data sources and to allow for close examination of the characteristics of Insite clients over time, a prospective cohort of Insite users has also been established. The Scientific Evaluation of Supervised Injecting (SEOSI) cohort is based on a representative sample of Insite users. The sample is derived through random recruitment of Insite users who are offered an informed consent to enroll into the study. Random recruitment involves attending the SIF at times of the day that are randomly selected using a random number generation program in SPSS, and inviting all users who use the SIF at this time to enroll in the study. As with VIDUS, participants provide a blood sample and conduct an interviewer-administered questionnaire. The SEOSI questionnaire deals with items that are particularly relevant to Insite, such as risk behaviours, public drug use, satisfaction with Insite, and access to medical care and addiction treatment services. All SEOSI participants provide informed consent to link to the Insite database so that SIF use can be tracked, as well as informed consent to access administrative health record databases in the community. As of September 1, 2004 over 900 Insite users have been enrolled into SEOSI and comparisons of socio-demographic variables (age, gender, etc) has shown that the SEOSI cohort is statistically similar to the overall cohort of insight users (all p > 0.05).
The Vancouver SIF evaluation is somewhat unique because of the availability of a number of pre-existing data sources. These data sources include the community health and safety evaluation (CHASE) cohort, which is a community recruited virtual cohort of Downtown Eastside residents that prospectively and retrospectively examines health service use in the community by linking to administrative health record databases. In addition, the Vancouver Injection Drug Users Study (VIDUS) is an ongoing prospective cohort study of injection drug users that involves semi-annual serology of HIV and HCV as well as a semi-annual questionnaire [24 (link)]. VIDUS and CHASE allow for the description of IDUs in the community who are using Insite and a comparison between those that are and are not using the service.
In addition, in order to augment these data sources and to allow for close examination of the characteristics of Insite clients over time, a prospective cohort of Insite users has also been established. The Scientific Evaluation of Supervised Injecting (SEOSI) cohort is based on a representative sample of Insite users. The sample is derived through random recruitment of Insite users who are offered an informed consent to enroll into the study. Random recruitment involves attending the SIF at times of the day that are randomly selected using a random number generation program in SPSS, and inviting all users who use the SIF at this time to enroll in the study. As with VIDUS, participants provide a blood sample and conduct an interviewer-administered questionnaire. The SEOSI questionnaire deals with items that are particularly relevant to Insite, such as risk behaviours, public drug use, satisfaction with Insite, and access to medical care and addiction treatment services. All SEOSI participants provide informed consent to link to the Insite database so that SIF use can be tracked, as well as informed consent to access administrative health record databases in the community. As of September 1, 2004 over 900 Insite users have been enrolled into SEOSI and comparisons of socio-demographic variables (age, gender, etc) has shown that the SEOSI cohort is statistically similar to the overall cohort of insight users (all p > 0.05).
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