Pubdate: Thu, 26 Jun 2008
Source: Daily Democrat (Woodland, CA)
Copyright: 2008 Daily Democrat
Contact:  http://www.dailydemocrat.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3030
Author: Luke Gianni

SHARP CONTROVERSY: YOLO'S 'NEEDLE EXCHANGE' DRAWS CITY OUTCRY

City officials are concerned about reports of used  hypodermic 
needles showing up in Woodland parks -  syringes they say are coming 
from the county's needle  exchange program.

Surprise and frustration were voiced by Woodland City  Council 
members last week after learning that a county  health contractor had 
been distributing intravenous  needles in Freeman Park, without 
consulting the city.

The problems started when personnel from the city's  Parks and 
Recreation Department began reporting the  discovery of hypodermic 
needles in Freeman and Everman  parks in Woodland, during their 
morning clean-ups over  the past year.

The county Board of Supervisors approved a  needle-exchange program 
last summer, which distributes  clean needles for each used one 
participants bring in  for exchange plus an additional 10.

Bette Hinton, the county's health department director,  said at the 
time that the program would cut down on  intravenously transmitted 
diseases like HIV and  hepatitis.

Jeff Sissom, park supervisor for the city, said,  however, his 
employees have seen more needles showing  up in the city's parks.

"It seems there has been an increase since the exchange  program 
started," Sissom said. "They find them all the  time."

The connection between the rise in syringes and the  county's 
exchange program wasn't made until recently  when Woodland's Vice 
Mayor Skip Davies said he heard  from his constituents that the 
county's mobile needle  exchange was operating in Freeman Park.

Davies said the county had never consulted the city.

This prompted sternly worded correspondence from city  officials to 
the county which in turn prompted the  county to sit down with city 
officials and Police Chief  Carey Sullivan to come up with a solution.

Both parks are city owned, open to the public and  commonly play host 
to outdoor parties and other family  events.

"I think the concern is they hadn't had any discussion  with any of 
the (city) council," Davies said. "We had  some individuals, from 
parents and constituents, asking  the city to sit down with the 
county. If they're going  to do that there where there are a lot of 
small  children playing, then I think they should find another  spot."

Cheryl Boney, deputy director of public health programs  for Yolo 
County, said the county uses a mix of  individual volunteers and 
satellite agencies to  distribute the needles in the county.

Boney noted that when the city notified her of the  problem, she 
immediately pulled the plug on the park  exchange.

"We were made aware of the concern of doing it in the  park," Boney 
said. "Once we were aware of it, we took  care of it."

The new program is a work-in-progress, Boney said, and  Freeman Park 
was a learning example for the county.

"It's a new program and we're working out the details,"  Boney said.

Since the county's adjustment, Sissom said, his crews  have noticed a 
reduction in the amount of needles they  are finding in the city's parks.

Boney sat down with city officials on Friday, including  City Manager 
Mark Deven and Woodland Police Chief Carey  Sullivan, to discuss 
their concerns about the program.

Deven reported in a City Council weekly newsletter  Friday that the 
county agreed to cease distribution in  the park and considered 
labeling their needles to  better track where they end up.

"City staff politely acknowledged the public health  risk and firmly 
stated the dissatisfaction with the use  of any city property for 
this purpose," Deven stated in  the newsletter.

Boney said she hopes her most recent meeting with the  city will 
serve to assuage their concerns and provide a  framework for 
distribution that the county and city  both can live with.

"We're kind of going through that initial education  period," Boney 
said. "We hope there will be support for  the program."

One county official who does not support the program,  however, is 
Matt Rexroad, the only supervisor to vote  against the program when 
it came up before the board  last August.

"I wish I could kill this program so badly, but I  can't," Rexroad said.

Rexroad said beyond the health risk of having used  needles in public 
places lies the greater question of  the program's effectiveness.

"I keep hearing, if we do this it prevents disease and  it will save 
us money," Rexroad said. "I don't know if  I believe that in this case."

The program cost the county around $100,000 to  implement - money, 
Rexroad said, that would be more  effectively spent providing the 
county's impoverished  children with health insurance.

"We're talking about $100,000 for a program, when the  county is in 
an economic free-fall right now," Rexroad  said. "In terms of bang 
for your buck, I would rather  put $100,000 in the hands of children 
than the hands of  IV drug users."

Boney said, however, the program will pay for itself  even if it only 
prevents one new case of HIV in the  county.

"It's a very cost-effective program," Boney said,  "Preventing one 
case of HIV saves the county $260,000.  We don't want any syringes 
out there either. From this  perspective, it's a double goal."
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MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart