Pubdate: Sat, 19 Aug 2017
Source: Hamilton Spectator (CN ON)
Copyright: 2017 The Hamilton Spectator
Contact:  http://www.thespec.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/181
Author: Deirdre Pike
Page: A15

BREAKING THE RULES TO SAVE LIVES CAUGHT IN CRISIS

Harm reduction workers follow correct belief relationships more
important than rules

Eight days of silence gives one sufficient time to engage in some of
the contemplation and reading necessary for moving about more wisely
in this world with our ever-increasing set of wicked problems. It also
provides the space for taking in a book or three, a practice I neglect
during my routinized day to day. So I have returned home from my
retreat richer than ever, gleaning wisdom from both the silent and the
written word.

Since then I have been working on the integration of what I picked up
from the likes of Thomas Merton, Adrienne Rich, Richard Rohr, Julian
of Norwich, Ron Rolheiser, bell hooks, Jesus, the Dalai Lama and others.

Many synchronous themes emerged from the mix, one being the breaking
of rules, a thing for which I've had a lifelong affinity. Some of the
rules I've broken were related to the seven deadly sins, many of which
I am likely remorseful.

Other rules I've broken or aided and abetted in the breaking of, I am
not so sorry at all because the impact of keeping the rule would have
left people without access to food, housing or some other basic human
need so the rule had no right to be there in the first place.

For the latter more life-giving than death-dealing breaking of rules,
I found the words of the Dalai Lama helpful. "Know the rules well, so
you can break them effectively."

 From my primary text, Falling Upward - A Spirituality for the Two
Halves of Life by Rohr, I read, "People who know how to creatively
break the rules also know why the rules were there in the first
place." He and some of the others also wrote pages about how we have
been shown over and again by God and through life itself that
relationships are more important than rules.

With all this in mind and heart I returned home to hear about the harm
reduction workers in Toronto breaking all the rules in an effort to
save further lives from the impact of drug use and overdose deaths.
Newspaper headlines in towns and cities across the province this
summer have been announcing the arrival of fentanyl and its evil
accomplice, carfentanil, into their communities.

Here in Hamilton that headline is read and gone as carfentanil, a
deadly elephant tranquillizer, was officially declared present in
November 2016, seven months after the drug was discovered in a police
raid. The significant lag time is due to the testing done by Health
Canada to confirm the substance.

This year Ontario released a new opioid tracking tool which shows
Hamilton needs to pay attention to this new presence and Dr. Jessica
Hopkins, associate medical officer of health says, "It's definitely
something that we're watching."

Watching is important. People in Hamilton are dying from opioid
overdoses at a rate of four a month. During the first half of 2017
there were 24 opioid overdose deaths in Hamilton, nearly double
compared to last year.

In Toronto where that number is substantially larger, watching was not
enough. Even the city's commitment to opening three safe injection
sites this fall was too late for the harm reduction workers who walk
alongside people who are using drugs and are now risking their lives
more than ever while their usual fix is laced by some evil minds with
fentanyl. Unsuspecting long time users are caught by an often deadly
surprise if the antidote Naloxone isn't injected immediately afterward.

So last weekend the workers risked their careers and arrest and took
to Moss Park and ran a "pop-up" safe-injection site. Police made a
wise decision not to arrest anyone including the 24 people who
accessed the site and the one person whose life was saved when they
overdosed in the tent.

It's good Hamilton's public health unit is dedicated to watching this.
They have hastened their scheduled report to council this fall and it
will be up to our 16 representatives around that table to make a good
rule for our community so our local harm reduction workers won't need
to break them in order to save lives.
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MAP posted-by: Matt