Pubdate: Tue, 25 Jun 2013
Source: Prince George Citizen (CN BC)
Copyright: 2013 Prince George Citizen
Contact:  http://www.princegeorgecitizen.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/350
Author: Dene Moore
Referenced: Drug Situation in Vancouver, Report prepared by the Urban 
Health Research Initiative of the British Columbia Centre for 
Excellence in HIV/AIDS, Second Edition June 2013: 
http://uhri.cfenet.ubc.ca/images/Documents/dsiv2013.pdf

HARM REDUCTION MORE EFFECTIVE THAN WAR ON DRUGS: STUDY

VANCOUVER - Harm reduction - not a war on drugs - has reduced illicit 
drug use and improved public safety in what was once Ground Zero for 
an HIV and overdose epidemic that cost many lives, says a 15-year 
study of drug use in Vancouver's impoverished Downtown Eastside.

The report by the B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS found that 
from 1996 to 2011, fewer people were using drugs and, of those who 
were, fewer were injecting drugs, said Dr. Thomas Kerr, co-author of 
the report and co-director of the centre's Urban Health Research Initiative.

"A public health emergency was declared here because we saw the 
highest rates of HIV infection ever seen outside of sub-Saharan 
Africa - in this community. At the same time, the community was being 
levelled by an overdose epidemic," Kerr said after presenting his 
findings to members of the group affected at a community centre in 
the heart of the neighbourhood.

Vancouver took a public health approach to the crisis, opening the 
country's first supervised injection site in 2003, and Kerr said the 
statistics show that approach was successful.

There were fewer people sharing needles in 2011, and there were fewer 
new infections of HIV and Hepatitis C related to sharing needles, the 
study found.

In 1996, almost 40 per cent of drug users reported sharing needles, 
but by 2011, that had dropped to 1.7 per cent. About 25 per cent of 
Vancouver's drug users are HIV positive, and about 90 per cent suffer 
from Hepatitis C.

The overall health of drug users had improved and more people were 
accessing addictions treatment, jumping from 12 per cent on methadone 
treatment in 1996 to 54.5 per cent since 2008, statistics showed.

"This is probably the city with the most aggressive harm reduction 
approach, yet we're seeing declining rates of drug use within this 
community," Kerr said.

Still, the Conservative government continues to fight programs such 
as supervised-injection sites, he said.

Earlier this month, the federal government introduced the Respect for 
Communities Act, which will require applicants of drug injection 
sites to consult with the community, provincial and municipal 
authorities and law enforcement officials, before setting up new facilities.

A federal Conservative party campaign suggested drug consumption 
sites could open across the country over the objections of local 
residents and law enforcement.

Several policing associations have sided with the federal government 
on the issue, but in B.C. the provincial government is a supporter of 
Vancouver's InSite.

The Supreme Court of Canada ordered the Conservatives to keep the 
Vancouver clinic open, despite their objections, but proponents of 
the site say the federal legislation would make it almost impossible 
to open another.

"We have a federal government that ignores science in favour of 
ideology, and people are sick and dying as a result," Kerr said.

"When we're dealing with matters such as life and death, I think 
we're obligated to base our decisions on the best available 
scientific evidence. I think it's unethical to do otherwise."

Dave Hamm, president of the Vancouver-Area Network of Drug Users, 
which has advocated for harm reduction measures, said that as 
Vancouver has promoted a health strategy, the federal government has 
promoted an American-style war on drugs.

"Crime is going down, drug use is going down, and they're still 
putting more into policing," he said.

The study found that illicit drugs continue to be easily available on 
the streets of Vancouver, despite enforcement efforts.

The centre and Hamm's group are divided, however, when it comes to 
legalization. The centre does not support the legalization of illegal drugs.

"We think the mistakes that were made through privatizing tobacco 
sales and alcohol sales have been well-documented, and we don't want 
to see the same mistakes made with illicit drugs," Hamm said.

There was some disappointing news for health officials in the study.

There has been only a slight drop in mortality rates among the city's 
illicit drug users, who have a death rate eight times higher than the 
general population.

And while overall drug use has declined, there is an increase in the 
use of crystal meth, in particular among street youth.

There has also been an increase in the availability of prescription 
opioids on the street, and housing continues to be a problem, with 
between 50 and 70 per cent of drug users homeless or reliant on 
shelters or the cheap single-room occupancy units available for rent 
in the city.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom