NANAIMO HALTS CRACK-PIPE HANDOUTS

The Vancouver Island Health Authority has stopped issuing free crack
pipes to addicts in downtown Nanaimo after city council and some
residents expressed concerns about the harm-reduction approach.

VIHA chief executive officer Howard Waldner said yesterday that the
authority realized "in hindsight" that it probably could have done a
better job of communicating the pilot project to the public and
politicians before implementing it more than five months ago.

"It's paused," Waldner said of the project, "and we'll take another
look at this in due course."

VIHA's mental health and addictions services outreach team had been
offering "safer crack kits" to addicts including the mouthpiece and
screen component of such pipes. The aim was harm reduction -- to help
stop the spread of diseases such as HIV, hepatitis C and tuberculosis
between addicts.

Earlier this month, Waldner estimated that VIHA nurses had
distributed about 200 of the kits.

But a VIHA news release this week said that staff had been harassed
recently while carrying out this work.

"We cannot tolerate any threats against our staff, and that is why
we've asked for a pause in this program, effective today, while we
work with the community to consider this approach along with other
potential harm-reduction strategies," Waldner said in the release.

In an interview, Waldner said the health authority has placed the
program on hold while it consults with Nanaimo's mayor and council
about VIHA's harm-reduction strategy.

Waldner said the practice of handing out the crack pipe kits was
approved by Provincial Health Officer Dr. Perry Kendall and is
happening in other Canadian cities including Vancouver, Toronto,
Ottawa and Winnipeg. It is not being done in Victoria.

The program was implemented "with the best of intentions" Waldner
said, but VIHA's news release acknowledged that its inception had
created tension in downtown Nanaimo.

Mayor Gary Korpan declined to comment yesterday to the Times Colonist
about VIHA's move. Instead, he referred to his quote in the health
authority's press release: "Nanaimo will work with all responsible
agencies on health, prevention, and enforcement issues related with
drug addiction. Any 'harm reduction' strategy must understand all
affected parties in our community, including mitigation of harm to
our neighbourhoods."