Pubdate: Tue, 07 Jun 2011 Source: Victoria Times-Colonist (CN BC) Copyright: 2011 Times Colonist Contact: http://www2.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/letters.html Website: http://www.timescolonist.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/481 Author: Dr. Will Small, Research Scientist British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v11/n352/a08.html Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v11/n352/a09.html Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v11/n353/a01.html Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v11/n354/a08.html Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v11/n354/a09.html Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v11/n355/a02.html Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v11/n356/a04.html Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v11/n356/a05.html Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v11/n356/a06.html Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v11/n357/a05.html Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v11/n363/a08.html Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v11/n364/a04.html Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v11/n369/a05.html HARM REDUCTION PROVEN GATEWAY TO TREATMENT Re: "Help isn't there, say harm reduction advocates," May 31. The article promotes the view that harm reduction efforts and addiction treatment are incompatible based on misleading statements and incomplete information. For example, Drug Prevention Network executive director David Berner asserts that it is absurd to think that supervised injection facilities can encourage drug users to enter addiction treatment. However, his opinion is contradicted by scientific evidence from the evaluation of Insite, Vancouver's supervised injection facility. Regular users of Insite are more likely to go into detox (the first step of addiction treatment), when compared to drug users who visit the facility less frequently. In the year following Insite's opening, there was a 33 per cent increase in detox use among Insite clients, compared to the year before it opened. It has been documented that contact with addictions counsellors at Insite facilitates entry into detox, and Insite clients who enter detox are more likely to move into residential addiction treatment programs and subsequently stop injecting drugs. The article also suggests that harm reduction programs operate without meaningful linkages to treatment. This ignores the existence of Onsite, a 30-bed facility offering detoxification services as well as transitional housing for people who have completed withdrawal and are awaiting entry into longer-term treatment programs. Located above Insite, Onsite accepts clients directly from Insite; demand for these treatment services is high. There is an urgent need to expand addiction treatment throughout the province; however, the view that harm reduction and addiction treatment are in opposition is simply not supported by the facts. Research shows how harm reduction programs are the first step for many in their transition to addiction treatment. Dr. Will Small, research scientist British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS - --- MAP posted-by: Richard R Smith Jr.