Visual Ethnography: Decriminalization and Stable Housing Equals Motivation, Stability, and Recovery Among Latinx Populations.

Despite recent reductions in overdose fatalities overall, the death toll among Latinx individuals continue to increase. Moreover, Latinx populations experience significant access and retention barriers to substance use disorder (SUD) treatment services as well as treatment delays. In an effort to better understand the recovery experiences of Latinx individuals in Massachusetts, researchers from the Boston University School of Social Work, working in partnership with staff from Casa Esperanza, used Photovoice (Fotovoz), a form of visual ethnography. Participants had a mean lifetime substance use of 16.6 years, with a range from 1 to 30 years, and were in recovery for 2 months to 3.25 years. Not surprisingly, as seen in the image shown here, selected by the group, housing emerged as a motivator for sobriety and a beacon of security, stability, strength, progress, and hope. (. Published online ahead of print April 16, 2020: e1-e2. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2020.305575).