Tools aim to improve care for people experiencing substance use stigma 

The Action Kit includes videos and tools that highlight the effects of substance use stigma and how to enact strategies to address them. (EQUIP Health Care) - Stigma and discrimination associated with substance use have been shown to contribute to barriers to care, especially among marginalized and Indigenous communities. Now, a team of researchers at Western and the University of British Columbia have launched an Action Kit of resources for health care providers in order to help combat substance use stigma and improve care in the future. Nadine Wathen, Professor, Arthur Labatt Family School of Nursing "The Action Kit encourages practitioners and organizational leaders to engage people with experiences of stigma and poor care in a way that ensures their voices are heard and prioritized," said project co-lead Nadine Wathen, professor at the Arthur Labatt Family School of Nursing at Western. Wathen says these tools support efforts by organizations and systems to improve social and health outcomes on a large scale. Colleen Varcoe, professor emeritus of nursing at UBC says stigma and discrimination make it very hard for people to seek care, particularly if they're Indigenous, or are assumed to have a history of substance use. "They expect they'll be judged, disrespected or denied care because they are assumed to be 'faking it' or to be looking for drugs." With the recognition that this work needs to be embedded into the larger strategy of an organization, the new tools, strategies and resources, called the EQUIP Equity Action Kit , include both self-directed learning modules for practitioners but also larger strategically-focused resources.