FUND DRUG PREVENTION, NOT DRUG USE: BEVAN

Police Chief Criticizes Research Into Safe-Injection Site

Ottawa police Chief Vince Bevan says government research money would be
best spent on drug prevention, education and treatment rather than deciding
whether the city needs a safe-injection site for addicts like the site in
Vancouver.

The chief even hopes public backlash to the $135,000 grant to a University
of Ottawa professor might kickstart an integrated drug strategy which was
introduced in May but has yet to be followed up on.

"They are looking at safe ways for drug addicts to use illicit drugs on a
regular basis when the drug use is going to eventually kill them," Chief
Bevan said yesterday. "Let's get on with prevention, education and
treatment, instead of killing them.

"Even experts in the health field say treatment for drug addicts has been
underfunded for years. The dollars would be better spent in other areas."

Lynne Leonard received research funds to study the viability of a
safe-injection site, which would offer drug users a safe, clean injection
area complete with drug paraphernalia, medical staff and addictions
counselling for those willing to use it.

Vancouver has had a safe-injection site for the past two years. That city's
deputy police chief, Bob Rich, said police endorsed the site because they
had reached the point where they were willing to try anything in the war
against drugs.

"We absolutely had a health epidemic," Deputy Chief Rich said. "The site
was not a police solution. The primary focus was an issue of health. The
health authority backed it, so we backed it."

He admitted the jury is still out on the project.

Chief Bevan favours an integrated drug strategy for Ottawa where all groups
and agencies involved in the fight against drugs are expected to pool
resources. That strategy remains in the developmental stages.

"I have not heard a word since May 11," Chief Bevan said, referring to the
date the strategy was announced. "I hope something happens soon."

The Vancouver site is North America's first legal supervised injection site
scientific research pilot project and opened in September 2003, operating
seven days a week from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m.

Ms. Leonard has already completed volumes of exploratory research which
involved years of monitoring injection drug users in Ottawa. Her work has
led her to conclude Ottawa has the highest rate of HIV and hepatitis C
infection in Ontario.

Ms. Leonard says drug users are quickly injecting drugs,

often in public places, and frequently reusing and sharing needles.

That leads to the spread of disease, often landing people in the emergency
department.

Ms. Leonard said about one-fifth of Ottawa injection drug users have
experienced near-fatal overdoses.

A safe-injection site would reduce those public health problems, she said.
Proponents say they cut public drug use and disease transmission.

"For starters, Ottawa is not Vancouver," said Chief Bevan. "There is a huge
difference.

"But why are we throwing money into this study when the Vancouver safe site
has not been evaluated? Perhaps we could wait for the Vancouver study and
see what pieces of it might be applicable to Ottawa. Then take it from there."

Deputy Chief Rich described Vancouver's downtown eastside where the site is
located as "utter chaos," and says even with the safe site, things are
still pretty bad: people shooting up right out on the streets. He said
15,000 people live there, with between 4,000 and 6,000 of them addicts.

But he said the concept came down to a health issue, not a police issue. He
said he would not pretend to compare Vancouver's drug situation to Ottawa's.

"From my perspective, the jury is still out," he said.

The site is well used, he said, and his officers will steer addicts to the
centre.

He said one of the positives is that, should an addict overdose while at
the site, they will not die.

But he said Vancouver's drug problem is so broad, "Even if injection sites
are part of the solution, they can only be a small part of it."

Vancouver Mayor Larry Campbell is more vocal in his enthusiasm for the
site, repeatedly calling it a success.

"It's surpassed all expectations we had," the former city coroner said in May.

"We've seen a (positive) difference in the number of people injecting in
the street.

"We've seen a change in the (downtown eastside) streetscape. We've seen a
drop in HIV and Hep C."