CENTRE OPENS FOR INJECTION DRUG USERS

A new needle exchange site is open for business in downtown
Belleville.

Injection drug users are being directed to the Belleville Freedom
Support Centre as of today, due to the closure of the downtown
Shoppers Drug Mart. The mental health centre is located at 350 Front
St., unit C-2, and is open from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Saturday.

The program is set up for intravenous drug users to cut down on the
chances of getting diseases such as HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis C from
reusing dirty needles, said Bill Sherlock of the Hastings and Prince
Edward Counties Health Unit.

The program itself does not encourage drug use, Sherlock
said.

"There are studies that show having a needle exchange program doesn't
increase drug use in a community," he said.

But, it does cut down on the chances of users contracting various
diseases.

The health unit provides the needles and it supplied 60,000 throughout
the two counties last year, up from 14,500 in 2003.

The program will cost the health unit about $6,000 this year, Sherlock
said. But that doesn't indicate drugs such as heroin and cocaine that
are injected are increasing in use, he said.

"It means more people are using the needle exchange," Sherlock said.
"More people become aware of it and more people use it. I don't
necessarily think drug use is going up."

The latest figures available, he said, come from a 1997 study done by
University of Toronto epidemiologist Dr. Robert Remis. The study
indicated there are about 300 injection drug users in Hastings and
Prince Edward counties.

The needles are handed out at 14 sites in the two counties, the
majority of them located in pharmacies.

Having the needle exchange at pharmacies is a real plus, said
Sherlock, because it puts drug users in contact with a health
professional who can answer questions, including where to go for
treatment if the user needs help or wants to quit.

That support will still happen at the mental health centre, he said.
"There are counsellors that are trained on mental health issues and
addiction."

As part of the mental health network, the centre provides a place for
those who have a mental illness to meet and talk, with assistance
available if needed.

Often, those who inject drugs do so because of a mental health
problem, said Elisabeth Ziegler of the support centre program.

"We see street drug use as self-medicating one's mood, just with
illegal substances," she said. "Our role is to offer safe peer support
to intravenous drug users as well as the community at large. We are
very excited to be able to contribute to the community in this way."

In this area, drugs injected, in order of preference according to
users (many use more than one drug so the total is more than 100 per
cent), are cocaine (77.5 per cent), morphine (45.9 per cent),
dilaudid, similar to morphine (32.9 per cent), heroin (27.6 per cent),
crack (31.9 per cent).