Pubdate: Wed, 24 Oct 2012
Source: Intelligencer, The (CN ON)
Copyright: 2012, Osprey Media Group Inc.
Contact: http://www.intelligencer.ca/feedback1/LetterToEditor.aspx
Website: http://www.intelligencer.ca/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2332
Author: W. Brice McVicar

DON'T TOUCH THAT NEEDLE

An outdoor drug den littered with used needles, spoons, matches and
various drug paraphernalia has been cleaned up by the local health
unit.

David Ryding, a public health inspector with the communicable disease
control department, visited the site Tuesday afternoon after inquiries
about it from The Intelligencer.

Ryding, who removed the potentially dangerous material which included
some needles that were not capped, said in two years with the
department he had never seen a site like the one just west of the
Riverside Trail in downtown Belleville.

"I can't say I've ever seen it like this," he said. "We don't get a
lot of calls to come out in the field like this. It's just unfortunate
because this is not what our (needle exchange) program
encourages."

Using thick gloves, metal prongs and wearing steel-soled shoes, Ryding
removed needles, tourniquets, syringes and packages from the site.

The difficulty, he noted, was ensuring everything was collected
considering the heavy blanket of leaves that covered the ground.

Emilie Aubin, who regularly walks her dog in the area and alerted The
Intelligencer to the drug site, said she discovered it a few weeks
ago.

"It's pretty much the first thing you see down there," she said,
noting her dog enjoys wading in the Moira River and she would wander
to the river's edge to accommodate her dog's desire.

Aubin said she has contacted police and the city about the site and it
has been cleaned up in the past but the number of needles in the area
has grown.

"My concern is that children might go down there and get pricked or my
dog might step on one," Aubin said. "It's dangerous."

Stephanie McFaul agreed.

The needle exchange program co-ordinator for the Hastings and Prince
Edward Counties Health Unit said used needles pose a serious threat to
the public. Under no circumstance, she said, should a member of the
public pick up a used needle.

"We would like people to report it to us as soon as they find it," she
said. "Our message to the public is if they should ever come across
any needles in a public domain they should call the health unit and
we'll ask for the specific location and then we'll send someone out to
find them and dispose of them properly.

"We don't encourage people to pick them up themselves because there
are risks."

Those risks include getting pricked by one of the needles which could
result in contracting a blood borne illness. McFaul said a used needle
prick could mean contracting HIV, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C.

Staff from the health unit have been trained to handle the needles
appropriately and dispose of them in a safe manner.

The health unit operates a needle exchange program with the intent
being used needles are not left out in a public area such as the site
near the trail.

The program, McFaul said, serves two purposes as it should prevent the
discovery of needles in the public but also helps reduce drug users
from reusing or sharing needles.

"We have 10 pharmacy-based needle exchange sites throughout the
counties and we also have three needle exchange sites at mental health
support networks and we have one at the Loyalist clinical services.
Some sites are very heavily used and others are not," she said.

Users are encouraged to pick up their needles and drop off their "used
equipment" at those sites. McFaul said the program is free,
confidential and "respectful" of users.

"We try to do some information sharing as well," McFaul
said.

For more information on the needle exchange program phone 613-966-5512
ext. 620.
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MAP posted-by: Matt