NEEDLES FOUND IN BOTTLE RAISE QUESTIONS

What would you do if you found a bottle with a dozen needles stored in it?

That is a question the staff at the George Hale bottle depot had to
deal with this week. On Thursday one of their returns included a
Gibson's bottle with approximately a dozen bloody syringes stored inside.

"It was busy, and we didn't get the table cleared right away,"
explains Rebecca Head, one of the workers at the bottle depot. "I
stopped my aunt from shaking them out and called the hospital."

But much to their surprise the Nicola Valley Health Care Centre
suggest they put them in a bleach bottle and close it tight.

"We were given no other indication of what to do with them," she
explains. "We've got a problem and we don't know what to do about it."

Head says this isn't the only time they have had to deal with needles
at the depot. In the past they found them in their garbage cans. She
says it concerns her that people are so careless.

"It's very dangerous," she says. "People think it's no big deal but
people have to work here and we have to handle things - lives are at stake."

She believes this was an extremely irresponsible act, and one that
could have had a very different and damaging outcome.

"I can't imagine doing that to someone," she says about the way this
person has put other lives at risk.

She is also shocked that there is little they can do except to throw
them in the garbage in a heavy plastic container.

That is the recommendation from Interior Health. Their tip sheet
"What Should I do if I Find Discarded Needles or Condoms?" includes
the same instructions the depot received. It says anyone who comes
across needles should put on heavy gloves and then use a pair of
tongs to pick up the needle and put it in a heavy plastic,
puncture-proof container. That should then be tightly sealed and
disposed of in the garbage.

According to Ken Christian, director of health protection with
Interior Health, this is the best advice they can offer for needles
that are found in small numbers around the community. He says it is
the safest method and protects people down the line.

He says the health community has strict rules as to how they deal
with "sharps" that they generate, including used needles. They are
collected as biomedical waste in special containers and are gathered
by a private company. They are then incinerated in Penticton.

This is the procedure followed by the Nicola Valley Health Care
Centre. The local pharmacies also collect sharps that are treated the same way.

Pharmacist Curt Thoms says they supply sharps containers for
diabetics, but Black's Pharmacy has a strict policy against supplying
the containers for street drug users. He recommends people who come
across needles follow the IH guidelines.

Street drug users do have an option, as the Helping Hands Society
(HHS) operates a needle exchange. They say there is no excuse for
people being irresponsible with their needles, because they can pass
them in and the society will deal with them properly.

"I believe they should all be incinerated," explains Marilyn Tolmie,
one of the founders of the HHS. "I have a hard time telling people to
throw them out, but that is what we recommend if someone finds needles."

She says the needles they collect at the needle exchange are put into
sharps containers and are given to public health at the health
centre, and they are incinerated.

Christian says it is unfortunate that they can't offer that service
for every needle found in the community, but he says it just isn't practical.

The HHS has agreed to assist the bottle depot this time and suggests
people with questions should call them at 378-6497.

Head is glad that they have the information to deal with a similar
situation in the future, but the incident was still disturbing. She
also points out that it could have been worse if the needles had been
found in a playground by children.

"We need more awareness about this kind of thing," she says. "I'm
glad it ended up here, at least we know what to do."

She adds that the way the issue was dealt with is still disturbing.

"I think it is a commentary on how blase this town is about drug
use," she says.