Peer Assisted Telemedicine For Health in Substance Users
PATHS is an intervention developed by Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) in collaboration with partners. Peer support specialists with lived experience assist people who use drugs to access telemedicine for hepatitis C (HCV) and HIV treatment and prevention, substance use disorder treatment, and mental health care.
OHSU clinicians provide streamlined, low-barrier access to care.
PEER SERVICES
with clients
every step of the way
HIV, HCV, syphilis antibody and diagnostic tests; substance use/mental health disorder screening
Insurance enrollment, HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis, treatment for HIV/HCV/STIs, medications for opioid use disorder, mental health treatment
The initial HCV-focused PATHS model was tested in a National Institutes of Health-funded randomized controlled trial (N = 203). The peer TeleHCV model demonstrated significantly greater impact on HCV treatment initiation and cure than the community referral approach.
[My peer] always found me one way or another. If she couldn't reach me by phone, she would come to my [parents'] house. No matter what it took for her to track me down, she always did. She didn't just stop at one spot because she wasn't able to get a hold of me. She never gave up.
Through a 2025-2028 SAMHSA grant, PATHS will implement same-day testing in 6 demonstration sites around the state and add same-day telemedicine for HIV, opioid use disorder medication, and mental health treatment, followed by bridge to local ongoing care.
PEER SPECIALISTS CAN CONFIRM A DIAGNOSIS AND CONNECT YOU WITH A DOCTOR TODAY!
Want a printable version of this information?
Download PATHS BrochureFunded through OHA's SAMHSA State Opioid Response Grant #H79TI085732 and OHSU's SAMHSA Hepatitis C Elimination Initiative Pilot Grant #H79TI088366
pathsprogram@ohsu.edu