Safe shooting

Despite education initiatives, needle exchange programs and methadone treatment, the rate of hepatitis C and HIV/AIDS among intravenous drug users in Canada remains “a serious public health crisis,” according to the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network. In a report released in Ottawa today, the Montreal-based organization called for beginning trials of supervised injection sites in Canadian cities today, citing the success of European and Australian projects.

The 60-page report, Establishing Safe Injection Facilities in Canada: Legal and Ethical Issues, has three main points: first, hepatitis C and HIV/AIDS rates are skyrocketing among IV drug users; second, the government needs to act quickly on this; and third, supervised injection sites in other cities have yielded benefits.

“Canadian law says we can put the regulatory framework in place easily,” says Ralf Jürgens, the Network’s executive director. “It’s morally and ethically clear. Supervised injection sites are a natural extension of the needle exchange program.”

While it may be a moral imperative for some, Jürgens admits that some groups are wary of the type of clients these people attract. “The [Vancouver Chinatown merchants] were opposed to the project because they think a honey pot will be created, and that addicts will be attracted to areas with a safe injection location,” Jürgens says. “In fact, these sites reduce the public nuisance drug users create, such as discarded needles. But the evidence from other cities shows that businesses very quickly come on side, and that they’re beneficial for the public, not just users.” :

—Patrick Lejtenyi