Pubdate: Fri, 29 Jun 2007
Source: Goldstream Gazette (Victoria, CN BC)
Copyright: 2007 Goldstream News Gazette
Contact:  http://www.goldstreamgazette.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1291
Author: Brennan Clarke
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?142 (Supervised Injection Sites)

STUDY POSES THREE CRD INJECTION SITES

There's an excellent chance that a safe-consumption site in Victoria 
would improve the health of the city's addict population, reduce the 
spread of HIV and help at least some IV drug users kick the habit.

But none of that will happen unless the Vancouver Island Health 
Authority provides a comprehensive support system of addiction 
treatment and counselling services.

Those were the two main findings of a year-long study on the 
feasibility of a safe-consumption site in the City of Victoria 
released Tuesday.

Authored by Dr. Benedikt Fischer, the 80-page report recommends 
Victoria pursue a decentralized model consisting of one large and two 
smaller safe consumption sites catering to not only IV drug users, 
but crystal methamphetamine and crack addicts as well.

However, Fischer's report identified "acute gaps" in available 
addiction treatment services in Victoria that would have to be filled 
to ensure the success of a safe consumption site.

"There's no sense in doing this if the people who want to access 
addiction treatment can't get it," Fischer said. "It doesn't make any 
sense to tell these people 'please come back in three months.' In 
fact, it doesn't make a lot of sense to tell them to come back in 48 hours."

Fischer said the biggest gaps exist in the area of "residential and 
long-term addiction care" and stressed that Victoria requires 
services to address various needs.

VIHA medical health officer Dr. Murray Fyfe, expressed concern about 
gaps in treatment services but said that VIHA has made efforts to 
improve services.

The release of the $60,000 study -- VIHA covered $50,000 of the cost 
while the city made up the difference -- sets the stage for Victoria 
Mayor Alan Lowe to apply for an exemption under Section 56 of the 
Controlled Drug and Substance Act, the same legal exemption that 
paved the way for InSite, Vancouver's safe-consumption-site pilot project.

However, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said last year his government 
will not support any more safe-consumption sites until research can 
show the Vancouver model is working.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman