Pubdate: Sun, 21 Sep 2003
Source: Penticton Western (CN BC)
Copyright: 2003 Penticton Western
Contact:  http://www.pentictonwesternnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1310
Author: Wolf Depner
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?137 (Needle Exchange)

NEW NEEDLES FOR DOWNTOWN DRUG USERS

Health officials hope a second needle exchange program in Penticton will 
reach out to downtown-area drug users.

Plans call for a public health nurse to work out of the Orchard Avenue 
Penticton Outreach Centre two hours a week on a three-month trial basis, 
said Alison Payne, Interior Health Authority (IHA) spokesperson.

"The (centre) is serving a group of people who are in need of nutrition and 
there is a very good chance they are also in need of other health-care 
services that they are not getting," she said.

Among the services the trial will offer, is the exchange of dirty needles 
for clean ones, said Payne. The downtown location may better meet the needs 
of many of the city's drug users, she said, than the current location at 
the Penticton Health Centre at 740 Carmi Ave. "It is removed from the 
population that we need to serve and that population does not usually go to 
the health unit," she said.

Last year, 85 people received 35,000 needles at that location, which will 
continue to serve clients during the downtown trial, she said.

While the used needle return rate was over 90 per cent, the program is not 
reaching everybody because its location is not easily accessible.

"That (needle exchange) is not the focus of the trial," she said. "But they 
will have (needles) with them because they know that will probably come up."

The focus is on assessing the health-care needs of those using the centre, 
Payne said. Health officials will use information gathered during the trial 
( its planned start date coincides with a flu clinic scheduled for 
mid-October at the centre)  to assess whether a more comprehensive program 
including mental health and addiction services, is needed, said Payne.

Officials also hope to determine whether Penticton needs a "street" nurse 
and a permanent second needle exchange program location. Payne was quick to 
note that not all of those who access the Penticton Outreach Centre's 
services are drug users.

And, she said, a needle exchange program is not the same as a 
safe-injection site where drugs are used in the presence of health-care 
providers without the fear of police action, said Payne. The goal of a 
needle exchange is to "mitigate" risks connected to intravenous drug use 
such as the spread of HIV-AIDS and Hepatitis, said Payne.

Health officials are still trying to secure permission from several groups 
to launch the trial program, Payne said.

They include the board of St. Saviour's Anglican Church N which manages the 
Penticton Outreach Centre and the Soupetaria Society N the centre's largest 
user, said Payne.

Payne hopes the public gets behind the program that will assist members of 
society some want to forget.

"I hope that there is no opposition to this idea because it is about 
delivering health care to a group who is currently not getting it," she said.
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MAP posted-by: Beth