Pubdate: Fri, 08 Sep 2006 Source: Vancouver Courier (CN BC) Copyright: 2006 Vancouver Courier Contact: http://www.vancourier.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/474 Author: Mike Howell, Staff writer Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?142 (Safe Injecting Rooms) CITY'S OTHER SAFE INJECTION SITE OPERATING WITHOUT FEDERAL PERMISSION A downtown facility for people with deteriorating health caused by AIDS never received an exemption from the federal government to operate its drug injection room. The Dr. Peter Centre assumed it was operating its injection room for the past three years under an exemption that Vancouver Coastal Health sought from Health Canada. It was only a few months ago that the Centre learned an exemption under the country's drug laws was not given to the Centre. Maxine Davis, executive director of the Centre, said she believes the exemption wasn't given because of a "technical glitch" involving a document the Centre provided in its application about the building's security system. Staff had just moved into its new building when the application was sent, Davis said. "There was some final execution of the paperwork that didn't seem to have been completed," she told the Courier. The Centre sought the exemption to ensure staff and clients wouldn't be charged with a drug offence. No charges have been laid in the past three years. The Centre had already gone public in April 2002 and announced it had operated an injection room since February 2002. At the time, the room was located in St. Paul's Hospital, where the Centre had operated until it moved into its permanent location at Comox and Thurlow. The Centre opened the injection room in 2002 after consulting with the College of Registered Nurses and the Centre's lawyer. Davis said two overdoses at the Centre formed part of the reason the Centre chose to open an injection room. In a nutshell, Davis said, there are "three little words" that encapsulate the reason for offering an injection room. "Duty to care," she said. "The bottom line is_ the Dr. Peter Centre is at greater risk of civil liability if we do not provide the service." If, for example, a nurse at the Centre refused to allow a client to inject themselves in the facility and that client went outside and overdosed, the Centre could be held liable. "A family member [of the deceased] could take the position that the Dr. Peter Centre refused to allow registered nurses to practise according to their standards of nursing practice and it contributed to [a death]," Davis said. When the Centre opened an injection room in February 2002, Davis said she met with Vancouver police to explain the need for the service. She said the injection room "has not been an issue" for Vancouver police. The Vancouver police department has publicly stated its support for Insite on East Hastings, the only legal injection site in North America. The key difference between the two sites is that Insite is for any injection drug users while the Centre is restricted to people registered there. Davis said an average of 35 to 50 people regularly use the three-stall injection room that is staffed by a nurse. As is done at Insite, the clients buy their drugs illegally and visit the room.They are supplied with clean equipment to inject. Davis estimated several thousand injections have occurred and no one has died in the room. Davis said the Centre will likely pursue an exemption. However, she said an exemption would not "drive our decision to be or not to be." The Centre houses a day health program and 24-hour care residence. It caters to people with AIDS and those with mental illnesses and addictions. About 70 per cent of the participants at the Centre have either a history of using substances or are struggling with addiction. The Centre was the brainchild of Dr. Peter Jepson-Young, a local doctor, who documented his battle with HIV on CBC TV. He died of AIDS in November 1992. Insite's operating licence was set to expire Sept. 12. Health Minister Tony Clement announced Sept. 1 that it will remain open until December 2007. The government will conduct further studies on the site and decide in December 2007 whether it will remain open. Clement did not mention the Centre in his statement. - --- MAP posted-by: Derek