After reading Mike Gimbel's letter criticizing harm reduction programs ("Narcan won't solve the problem of addiction," June 23), I must say that I have heard remarks like his for years. Yes if you really want to waste public dollars, after overdosing and being revived take a drug user to a residential program. Obviously this guy doesn't get it and may never get it. How do you engage drug users? By forcing them to stop? I think not, most people working in drug treatment know about the stages of change but they often forget about the first part which is precontemplation. This is where harm reduction fits into the picture. [continues 121 words]
I hope thatNorth ShoreSunday's recent article on naloxone ("I want a new drug," March 5) will help bring about a healthy debate on the most humane way to engage and deal with persons who are using opiates. I have been working in the prevention field for more than 15 years and have seen my share of people die needlessly as the commonwealth deals with health issues through law enforcement and legislative procedures. During the past 10 years, I along with others in the harm-reduction field have been providing training to people who inject heroin on what an overdose is, how it is caused, how to recognize an OD and how to respond to it. We also cover a wide range of health issues that affect members of the drug-using community; this training focuses on building skills to help individuals be proactive in self-care. The training sessions are aimed at educating people who use opiates, and like most prevention projects, it focuses on changing the social norms of a particular target population. [continues 605 words]
