Grant: Doctoral: Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships

Substance use disorders (SUDs) are associated with a range of negative health outcomes and represent a significant cost to the Canadian healthcare system. Many of these costs are associated with repeat admissions to hospitals related to complications from substance use, which have been further exacerbated in the wake of the ongoing opioid epidemic. Beyond representing healthcare cost drivers, patterns of healthcare utilization may also be indicative of unmet service needs. Currently little is known about healthcare utilization among important sub-populations that may experience elevated rates of substance use and related harms. Specifically, research has repeatedly shown that sexual minorities, including lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals, experience elevated rates of substance use, distinct substance-related harms, and population-specific barriers to treatment. Furthermore, there is evidence to suggest that other intersecting social identities (e.g., gender, race, and socioeconomic status) can play a critical role in how sexual minorities experience substance use and related health outcomes. Better understanding the impact of substance use on hospital utilization among sexual minorities could inform population-specific interventions to improve patient care, reduce healthcare costs, and address health inequities. This study will deploy an existing linked dataset of the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS), a representative survey of the social determinants of health of the Canadian Population, and the Discharge Abstract Database (DAD), a national database containing information on hospital admissions and discharges. To ensure sufficient statistical power, multiple cycles of the CCHS and DAD will be used. Descriptive statistics and regression modelling will be used to identify differences in healthcare utilization outcomes among sexual minority sub-populations across intersecting social identities and in comparison to the heterosexual population.