{
  "abstract": "The principle \"Nothing about us without us\" underscores the ethical imperative to involve people with lived and living expertise in shaping harm reduction praxis. While the United States Veterans Health Administration (VHA) has expanded harm reduction initiatives, such as syringe services and naloxone distribution, over the past four years, Veterans with lived and living expertise (VWLLE) have not been meaningfully integrated into policy and program design. In response, VHA clinicians and advocates established the Harm Reduction Veteran Engagement Board (HR-VEB), a peer-supported initiative that positions VWLLE as partners in harm-reduction reforms. This perspective emphasizes structural barriers faced by Veterans who use drugs, highlights the leadership and work of HR-VEB members, and outlines policy and practice recommendations for designing more equitable care. Through the voices and work of Veterans, we argue that peer-led harm reduction is both evidence-based and a matter of social justice.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "VA Illiana Healthcare System, 1900 E Main St, Danville, IL, 61832, USA. Elizabeth.dinges2@va.gov.",
    "San Francisco Veterans Affairs Health Care System, 4150 Clement St (119), San Francisco, CA, 94121, USA. Tessa.rife@va.gov.",
    "School of Pharmacy, University of California, San Francisco, UCSF, 513 Parnassus Ave, Box 0403, San Francisco, CA, 94143, USA. Tessa.rife@va.gov.",
    "VA Illiana Healthcare System, 1900 E Main St, Danville, IL, 61832, USA.",
    "Community Medical Services, 1101 Arrow Point Dr. Suite 214, Cedar Park, TX, 78613, USA.",
    "Saint Louis University, 1 N. Grand Blvd, Saint Louis, MO, 63103, USA.",
    "Community Medical Services, Southern Arizona, 3720 S. Park Ave Suite 601, Tucson, AZ, 85713, USA.",
    "Montare Behavioral Health/Renewal Health Group, 829860 Copper Run Dr, Harvest, AL, 35749, USA.",
    "NYU School of Global Public Health, 708 Broadway 6th Floor, Rm 658A, New York, NY, 10003, USA.",
    "Department of Anthropology10, University of Colorado Denver, Campus Box 103, PO Box 173364, Denver, CO, 80217, USA.",
    "Connecticut Harm Reduction Alliance, 28 Grand St, Hartford, CT, 06106, USA.",
    "Independent harm reduction advocate, Chicago, IL, USA.",
    "VA Orlando Healthcare System12, 13800 Veterans Way, Orlando, FL, 32827, USA."
  ],
  "article_type": "brief report",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 14,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Beth Dinges"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1,
        2
      ],
      "name": "Tessa Rife-Pennington"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Avery Risinger"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4
      ],
      "name": "Aaron Ferguson"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5
      ],
      "name": "Aaron M Laxton"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        6
      ],
      "name": "Kristi Rodriguez"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        7
      ],
      "name": "Zachary Goff"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        8
      ],
      "name": "Franklin Taveras"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        8
      ],
      "name": "Juan Cortez"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        8
      ],
      "name": "Alex S Bennett"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        9
      ],
      "name": "Nikketa Marina Burges"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        10
      ],
      "name": "Mark Jenkins"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        11
      ],
      "name": "Garry Hayes"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        12
      ],
      "name": "Minh Q Ho"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/cmv42rfzx3kds.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1186/s12954-026-01478-y",
  "fulltext_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13721359",
  "id": "cmv42rfzx3kds",
  "issns": [
    "1477-7517"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42958363",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Rapid Publication"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2713|HIV, Drug Use, Sexual Risk"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7171933654",
  "pdf_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13721359?pdf=render",
  "pmcid": "PMC13721359",
  "pmid": "42958363",
  "published": "2026-08-01",
  "publisher": "BMC",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/cmv42rfzx3kds.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-01T00:20:47Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42958363",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42958363"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-03T12:22:04Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13721359",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1186/s12954-026-01478-y"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2713|HIV, Drug Use, Sexual Risk",
      "subfield": "epidemiology-public-health"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Centering Veteran expertise: Advancing Peer-Led Harm Reduction in the Veterans Health Administration.",
  "title_text": "Centering Veteran expertise: Advancing Peer-Led Harm Reduction in the Veterans Health Administration.",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-03T12:22:04Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/cmv42rfzx3kds",
  "venue": "Harm reduction journal",
  "versions": []
}