Vic News: Needle Exchange location eyed

Victoria News
Needle exchange location eyed
By Roszan Holmen – Victoria News

Published: July 31, 2009 4:00 PM
Updated: July 31, 2009 4:12 PM

A building in the Burnside-Gorge neighbourhood has been singled out as the frontrunner for a new fixed needle-exchange site.

An agreement looks promising for the new pilot project, said Robert Randall, a member of the needle exchange advisory committee.

It’s been 14 months since the needle exchange on Cormorant Street closed. Ever since, the Vancouver Island Health Authority has been on the lookout for a replacement building.

Resistance from landlords has been a major reason why alternative sites fell through, Randall said. The landlord in the Burnside-Gorge building, however, likes the idea. “He supports the idea of harm reduction … To find a landlord OK with this is pretty amazing,” Randall said.

VIHA confirmed that one landowner has come forward with a proposal to house the facility.

“It’s our hope that this will be a viable location,” spokesperson Shannon Marshall said.

But work still needs to be done, she said.

First, the advisory committee needs to make a recommendation. Next, the broader community will be consulted.

Randall confirmed the potential site is in an industrial area.

Ideally, he said, the new location would be downtown, but that’s not realistic given budget cuts at VIHA and high lease rates in the core.

rholmen@saanichnews.com

Find this article at:
http://www.bclocalnews.com/vancouver_island_south/victorianews/news/52222537.html

Needle Exchange Update

VIHA has identified a potential new location for a fixed needle distribution site. It’s in the Burnside-Gorge neighbourhood just north of the Downtown border on Princess Street.

Members of the DRA have been part of VIHA’s Needle Exchange Advisory committee and its spin-off, the Site Selection Subcommittee. We find that this site–while far from perfect–meets many of the requirements a successful needle exchange needs.

The Times Colonist reports on it here, although it weighs heavily on the opinions expressed by members of SOLID (Society of Living Intravenous Drug users). It should be noted that the spokesperson for SOLID may not necessarily reflect the views of the SOLID Board or membership, let alone the opinions of Victoria’s drug users.

In a July 23 letter to the Vancouver Island Health Authority’s Needle Exchange Advisory Committee, a group calling itself SOLID — Society for Living Intravenous Drug Users — said a proposed site on Princess Street was inappropriate. No address was given.

The letter, a copy of which was obtained by the Times Colonist, said the area is known to drug users as “extremely dangerous and violent due to street gang activity,” and any attempt at extra policing would only scare away needle-exchange clients.

The area is a few steps away from Government Street’s prostitute stroll. I’m not aware of any other extraordinary “gang” activity here and I’m certain the Vic PD would agree.

SOLID, listed as a member of the Needle Exchange Advisory Committee, also said that the site was too far from downtown services, buildings were badly maintained and unsuitable for a health service and current tenants would have to be displaced.

The site is relatively close to needed services. The compactness of Downtown Victoria gives the illusion of being far. Superimpose Victoria’s services onto a map of Vancouver or any other large city and the distances appear much closer.

The houses need minimal upgrades to meet requirements according to VIHA–not much more than was done at their comparable Nanaimo exchange.

It’s true that current tenants will be displaced but the landlord assures us accomodation will be made at his other properties. Still, there would be a net loss of low-income housing.

The letter argues 941 Pandora Ave., the site of the old St. John’s Ambulance Society, is still the best site for a needle exchange.

But the exchange, and the accompanying drug trade, would destabilize the 900 block Pandora which is already at critical mass for chaos. The residents (including Our Place) deserve a home free from public disorder.

Globe discussion on SALOME project

Globe & Mail follow-up to yesterday`s story on giving heroin to addicts.

The Globe on Vancouver’s new heroin for addicts plan

Trial to give free heroin to hard-core addicts in Vancouver and Montreal

It’s known as the SALOME trial, and it follows on the heels of the NAOMI study.

The NAOMI trial was criticized by some addictions physicians but drew no comment from the federal government, which paid more than $8-million for the research.

“It’s been disappointing,” said Martin Schechter, who led NAOMI and is also working on SALOME. Dr. Schechter said European health authorities are very interested in the work, but Canadian authorities will not acknowledge it.

“There’s a lot invested in NAOMI. We did everything we could to translate the information for decision-makers to make them understand what it meant,” he said.

Dr. Krausz, a leading addictions researcher, has conducted another heroin trial in Germany, the largest such randomized clinical trial in Europe.

The Canadian research aims to determine if medically prescribed heroin is a safe and effective treatment and if users will accept the drug in pill form instead of injecting it.. It will also measure whether a licenced narcotic, Hydromorphone, can be used instead of heroin.

His team is now recruiting about 200 severe heroin addicts who have failed to respond to existing treatments and they expect to have the clinics in Vancouver and Montreal open by this fall.

Last week, Dr. Krausz’s medical team sat down with Vancouver philanthropists asking for additional support for the clinics that will distribute both heroin and a legal narcotic substitute to hard-core addicts. Organizers say one business leader immediately offered a cheque for $100,000.

Can this work? Only if detox and effective addictions treatment are close behind, just as it should be with a needle exchange or supervised injection site. I fear too many carrots and not enough sticks are being offered. All the programs targeted for addicts must have as their end goal the elimination or reduction of the drug use that shatters the body, brain and spirit.

Battle of the United Nations over Victoria harm reduction!

An article in today’s Times Colonist berates Victoria for not having a needle exchange, claiming it goes against United Nations health guidelines. Says health researcher Thomas Kerr:

“I think British Columbians should be very concerned about the fact that a relatively wealthy place like Victoria is not adhering to international guidelines regarding HIV prevention,” Kerr said.

“It’s an embarrassment and I wouldn’t be surprised if the UN Human Rights Commission pronounced that the city of Victoria is violating essential rights by not providing those services,” he said.

All is well then, right? Except that another United Nations body, the International Narcotics Control Board says that safe consumption sites and distribution of crack cocaine kits contravene the UN convention against traffic in illicit drugs.

…as they are facilities where persons can abuse with impunity drugs acquired on the illicit market, [safe consumption sites] contravene the most fundamental principle of the international drug control treaties: drugs should be only used for medical or scientific purposes.

So the UN is mad at us either way. What will the effect be for Victoria? From the health perspective it bolsters the argument for harm reduction but as far as the illicit drug angle goes, the INCB’s opinion doesn’t count for much around here.

Social issues meeting follow-up

UPDATE April 2, 2009: More impressions by Yule Heibel and Davin Greenwell

Our Monday night event, On The Front Lines: Community Solutions for Homelessness and Social Issues, was a great success. A good sized crowd attended to hear the latest on policing, justice and social issues from Police Chief Jamie Graham, Councillor Charlayne Thornton-Joe, GV Coalition to End Homelessness director Jill Clements and the DVBA’s Ken Kelly.

Ken gave us an update on Downtown initiatives from the business standpoint, including the Clean Team, Con-Air, Retail C.O.P. and the Clean and Safe Committee. Charlayne and Jill got us up to speed with the Mayor’s Task Force and the Coalition including how they’ve reached the first year goal of housing 200 people.

But it was Chief Graham who received the most interest, with residents wanting answers on a diverse range of topics including jaywalking, camping in parks, open drug use and calling 911.

On the latter topic, Graham was clear: don’t hesitate to call 911 if you see something illegal or you feel someone’s safety is in question. It’s true your call will be queued and you might not get an immediate response, especially if it’s a busy time. But you need to call because this information is needed to track crime hotspots. And the Chief said, even if he were to be driving by the area by chance when the call came in he wouldn’t hesitate to investigate it himself.

Graham gave no opinion on the topic of safe injection sites, saying he would let politicians decide and he will enforce whatever law is in place.

The Times Colonist follows up on our meeting here “Police Chief: Victoria’s Drug Problem Not as Big as Some Say“:

“From experts in the field that go undercover, and trust me they are undercover to try to buy drugs, they are not there in the kind of volume you might think. When over a period of two weeks or so we end up with only 12 or 15 arrests, those numbers are really small,” Graham said.

Overall, Graham said, Victoria has a small group of hard-core drug users.

“It’s not widespread. It’s small. They’re disruptive and we know they create difficulties.”

The Times Colonist further expands on Graham’s comments in this editorial “The Real Downtown Problem“:

“Many of the issues our officers are sent to, they act almost as referees,” Graham said, adding the most common calls city police respond to are reports of alcohol-related disorder — people yelling or screaming, arguments, doors being slammed or pushing and shoving.

By comparison, a recently completed undercover operation in Victoria was hard-pressed to turn up any drugs or arrests at all. Over the course of two weeks, police made only about a dozen arrests, and undercover officers reported surprise at how difficult it was to buy illegal drugs.

This is not to downplay the need to deal with the illegal drug trade in downtown Victoria: One need only look at the numbers from needle exchanges and social agencies to be assured the problem is very real. And those addicted to illegal drugs should have every opportunity to seek help and get the treatment they need.

But alcohol is just a different kind of drug — the only difference is that it’s legal. That doesn’t make the fallout from its abuse any less harmful to individuals, families and communities.

The DRA is happy to have sponsored this talk which has spurred some thoughtful dialogue in the community. We look forward to talking to our guests in the future and look forward to hearing about more progress.U

TC: Urban Safety on Town Hall Agenda

Urban safety on town-hall agenda

Times Colonist
March 30, 2009

Victoria police Chief Jamie Graham will address the forum, which will also include representatives from city council, the Downtown Victoria Business Association and the Coalition to End Homelessness. “We’re going to have an opportunity for these people to get up … and just talk about what the issues are and how they’re handling them,” said Robert Randall, chair of the Downtown Residents Association.

Victoria’s downtown is much like a huge “dysfunctional” family with many competing interests, Randall said.

“It’s really complex. In some ways it’s getting a lot better. We’re seeing a lot of really positive work from some of angles. We’re seeing more residents in the downtown and lot of good businesses opening up so a lot of the dead parts of downtown that you really didn’t want to go to are now walkable.

“The needle exchange is gone, so Cormorant Street is now a place you no longer avoid, but at the same time, Pandora’s getting a bit dicey although it’s still safe,” Randall said.

On the down side, Randall said, the downtown is beginning to see the emergence of a new breed of more aggressive drug dealers.

“That’s a bit worrying. So [the downtown] is going in both directions,” he said. “Overall I’m optimistic but I’m troubled about these continuing trends.

Event: On The Front Lines: Community Solutions for Homelessness and Social Issues

The Downtown Residents’ Association is presenting a special event for all residents of Downtown:

On The Front Lines: Community Solutions for Homelessness and Social Issues

Monday, March 30, 7 p.m – 9 p.m.
City Hall Antechamber, Centennial Square

A meeting for residents of Downtown/Harris Green to hear about some ground-breaking solutions for homelessness, crime, safety and other social issues that concern us all. We’ve gathered the experts who will be able to answer your questions. Join us for Silk Road Tea and snacks and an evening of informative discussion. Open to all DRA members. Please bring a neighbour!

Schedule:

Introduction by Robert Randall, DRA

Vic PD Chief Jamie Graham and Inspector Jamie Pearce on Downtown Security

Councillor Charlayne Thornton-Joe on the Mayor’s Task Force and our homeless population

Jill Clements of the Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness on the Coalition, its goals and achievements

Ken Kelly of the Downtown Victoria Business Association on the Clean and Safe Team, Con Air and the Community Court Program

Question and answer session follows

I hope to see you there! This event is free and no pre-registration is required.

Treat addiction as a disease: BC MD

Times Colonist: B.C. doctors are calling for the provincial government to formally recognize addiction as a chronic disease — and provide public funding to deal with it.

This could have possible implications for Victoria, including paving the way for a possible safe injection site Downtown.

Victoria: A century of cocaine use and abuse

Thanks to the Times Colonist’s new searchable 1858-1910 Internet archive, people can research any variety of topics covered by Victoria’s eminent daily newspaper.

One interesting issue is the appearance of cocaine, a substance that is very relevant today obviously, but has been historically overshadowed by the more notorious opiates: heroin and opium.

Cocaine first gained mention in the newspaper in the late 19th Century through articles reprinted from papers in New Orleans, San Francisco, Seattle and other US cities that detailed harrowing accounts of the Jekyll and Hyde effect the drug had on its usually upper-class users.

Here is an interesting excerpt from a Nov. 8, 1885 article reprinted from the New Orleans Times-Democrat:

“I believe that cocaine attacks that part of the brain where the conscience and the moral sense reside. That is a rough an unscientific way of putting it, but it will convey my meaning. When cocaine has been given for any length of time the character breaks down. That is inevitably the result. The drug seems to be a direct connecting link between mind and matter. I can’t put it any more strongly than I have, that with a bottle of cocaine and a hypodermic syringe you could change the very best man you know into a creature fit only for the gutter.”

A few years later, advertisements offering cocaine-fortified wine made near-daily appearances in the paper. Presumably by this time cocaine was dispensed by druggists on doctor’s orders as word of the drug’s analgesic uses spread.

The first Colonist reference to Cocaine in a Victoria context is in a front page ad in the Dec. 1, 1892 issue promoting the well-known Keeley Cure for addicts:

THE W. H. KEELEY CO.
—FOR THE CURE OF THE—
LIQUOR HABIT
MORPHINE HABIT
OPIUM HABIT
COCAINE HABIT
CHLORAL HABIT
TOBACCO HABIT
NERVOUS DEBILITY
—
If you are addicted to any of the foregoing habits, or suffering from NERVOUS DEBILITY, there is hope for you.
NO CURE, NO PAY. Correspondence solicited. All communication confidential. For terms apply to our address
W. C. SHAW, Manager,
DR. YARROW, Medical Advisor
Rooms 1 & 2, Burnes House.

Note: Burnes House still exists today in Bastion Square and is used as office space.

It is unfortunate to see that all drug use, including cocaine continues to grow, and that even cheaper, more devastating varieties wreak the kind of havoc 19th century citizens could only imagine.