This interesting article was passed along to me yesterday. It's about supervised drug injection centers, where users bring their drugs, shoot up in a sterile booth, and leave without fear of arrest. The goal is to prevent overdose and infectious disease. Such a facility already exists in Vancouver, and some benefits have been seen. San Francisco is now looking at establishing the first facility in the U.S.
What do you think about this approach? Is it a logical progression of the harm reduction philosophy, or is it going too far? Would you like to see a supervised shooting gallery in our area someday?
Brandywine Counseling & Community Services saves lives. We help people recover from addiction and mental illness, and reduce their HIV risk. Each life saved touches other lives, families, and communities in the Delaware region.
2 comments:
I think it's an awful idea. It's bad enoguh that Delaware is passing out needles. Why do we keep sending a message that it's ok to use drugs? Can you think of a way to prevent drug use,instead of encouraging it?
Thanks for your comments. At Brandywine Counseling, we don’t believe needle exchange encourages drug use. Its purpose is to stop the spread of HIV by stopping people from sharing needles. We always offer people information on drug treatment too, in fact, Delaware is fortunate to have one of the only needle exchange programs run by a drug treatment program. But sometimes people are not ready to stop using. If we’ve helped someone reduce their HIV risk, that’s a step in the right direction.
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