INJECTION SITE CUTS CLIENTS' USE OF DRUGS - STUDY

Harper Government Accused Of Ignoring Research In Favour Of
Ideology

The Harper government's refusal to support North America's only legal
supervised drug-injection site is driven by ideology and politics --
not research, two health scientists said yesterday after the release
of a new report on the Vancouver facility.

The report, published in a British medical journal, says Insite has
resulted in a 30-per-cent increase in the use of detoxification programs.

This suggests that the site "has probably helped to reduce rates of
injection drug use among users of the facility," concluded the five
scientists at the B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS in their
report, published in the June issue of Addiction.

Last September, when he refused to grant a 31/2-year permit extension,
Health Minister Tony Clement questioned whether research supported
Insite.

"The government seems intent on ignoring scientific evidence to pursue
an ideological agenda at the expense of lives in the Downtown
Eastside," said co-author Dr. Julio Montaner.

He said the new conclusions answer Mr. Clement's questions about
whether Insite is contributing to lower drug use and fighting addiction.

The report said the average number of users entering detox programs
increased from 21.6 to 31.3 in the year after Insite opened.

"There have been many benefits of Insite in terms of public order and
reduced HIV risk," said co-author Dr. Evan Wood.

"However, the fact that it appears to be pulling people out of the
cycle of addiction by leading them into programs that reduce drug use
is remarkable."

Erik Waddell, a spokesman for Mr. Clement, noted yesterday that the
government has followed through on its commitment to expand research
on safe injection sites.

Health Canada is commissioning a study costing up to $250,000 to
analyse health, public order and operational issues, as well as "local
contextual issues" relating to injection sites.