INJECTION SITE GETS GO-AHEAD

Health Canada approves three-year supervised-injection trial in Downtown
Eastside

The first legally approved safe-injection site for drug users in North
America got the go-ahead from Health Canada Tuesday for a three-year trial
in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside.

The federal government is also kicking in $1.5 million over four years to
cover the cost of a scientific evaluation of the pilot run by the Vancouver
Coastal Health Authority, which will likely begin operations in early
September.

The news produced quiet jubilation when it became official late Tuesday.

Vancouver Mayor Larry Campbell beamed as he announced the news to his
councillors, many of whom stood and applauded the news in what was clearly
an emotional moment.

"Everybody in here should take pride in this. We are the first in Canada,
the first in North America," said Campbell, while several councillors
praised him for his leadership.

The battle over drug policy and safe injection sites produced a political
storm in the city last year. Campbell and his Coalition of Progressive
Electors council swept to power last November in large part because of their
promise to campaign for injection sites -- something that several European
cities and Sydney, Australia, have tried and found effective -- and other
new solutions to the city's drug-addiction problems.

Injection sites have been championed by health advocates in Europe,
Australia and Canada as an effective strategy to lower overdose deaths and
infection rates among drug users, while encouraging them to take better care
of themselves without insisting they quit using drugs immediately.

Campbell came under frequent attack in recent months because the site hadn't
opened, in spite of his campaign promise that it would be open Jan. 1, while
police initiated a crackdown on the Downtown Eastside's open drug market --
a move that made it look as though Vancouver's attempt at a new drug policy
was turning into just the same old "war on drugs."

"I hope now that those who were so doubtful this would happen will give you
a little credit," Councillor Tim Stevenson told Campbell. "It has been your
leadership that has brought this to fruition."

Campbell in turn praised former Vancouver mayor Philip Owen, who spearheaded
the city's efforts to develop a new drug policy, along with the health
authority and police.

"It is difficult, if not impossible, for me to imagine this initiative
without Philip Owen," he said.

Campbell said he expects the site will now open in early September, once
construction started by the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority, which
started last month, is finished.

"It's a good day," said Viviana Zanocco, a spokeswoman for the health
authority.

"We're trying to lower the infection rate, the overdose rate, just really
connect with IV [intravenous] drug users and improve health outcomes and
implement some harm reduction."

The site will be located at 135 and 139 East Hastings. The $1.2 million tab
for the renovation work is being paid by the province.

But the health authority hasn't yet secured the $2 million per year it needs
to operate the site. Zanocco said several applications for operating money
have been filed and are likely to be approved now that the authority has the
go-ahead from Health Canada.

The health authority has applied for operational funding through the federal
drug strategy's primary health care transition fund, a fund of about $800
million set aside by Ottawa about two years ago. An application for the
money has also been filed with the Vancouver Agreement -- a joint project
with all three levels of government aimed at improving the Downtown
Eastside.

The annual operating budget would cover staffing and supply costs for the
site, which Zanocco said will likely be open 18 hours a day.

"This is subject to change, but we're looking at having one registered
nurse, one licensed practical nurse and an addictions counsellor to be
present at all times," she said.

The health authority will likely also hire staff from the drug-using
community.

"Sometimes [users] don't relate well to medical professionals telling them
what to do, so [peer staffing] is just like a different counselling level,"
Zanocco said.

Recent health authority statistics show there are about 4,700 injection drug
users in the Downtown Eastside. About 95 per cent of them have hepatitis and
about one third are HIV positive.

For the past three months, the Housing Action Committee has been running its
own, unofficial, safe injection site on the Downtown Eastside. David
Cunningham, a member of the committee, said the Health Canada announcement
is nothing to get excited about.

"I think it's too little, too late," he said. "I think enough people have
already died. I don't think we should celebrate this. They [Health Canada]
should have acknowledged it as a health catastrophe from the get-go."

Cunningham said the Housing Action Committee will continue running its own
safe injection site even when the health authority open its site in
September.

Fiona Gold, a street nurse who works on the Downtown Eastside, was thrilled
with the announcement, but said there is much more work that needs to be
done in the area of drug treatment.

"It's a great step for Vancouver and for Canada," she said. "It's the
beginning of a more sane and humane drug policy, but it's only part of a
treatment continuum."

Judy McGuire, acting executive director of the Downtown Eastside Youth
Activities Society, was also pleased with the announcement, but wants
guidelines in place for youth who may be using the site.

McGuire said "there will be ... adults hanging around those sites who, in
fact, could be predators against youth, so I think there should be definite
protocols drawn up in terms of how youth use those sites."