NEEDLES: A SORE POINT

Exchange Program Controversy

THE "mouthpiece" for Catholic Archbishop George Pell says needle exchange
programs are responsible for the high rate of drug overdoses in Melbourne
and should be reassessed.

"There is prima-facie evidence to suggest that the rising death rate in
injecting drug users is closely related to the wider availability of free
needles and syringes," Dr Joe Santamaria claimed in the Archbishop's
magazine, Kairos, last month. About 300 Melburnians died from drug overdoses
this year.

But health workers said needle exchange programs protected the community
from epidemic rates of Hepatitis C and HIV.

Dr Santainaria told the Leader money spent on exchange programs was wasted
because 40 per cent of drug users shared needles.

He said it was only encouraging the other 60 per cent to take drugs, which
in turn increased their chance of overdosing.

In the article, Dr Santamaria says needle exchange programs will be found to
cause more harm than good if they are assessed by an independent panel of
scientific professionals.

"Making syringes freely available does not prevent the sharing of injecting
equipment," he wrote.

"There are other methods that can be used to help drug addicts and they do
not involve the co-operation in an intrinsically evil act.

"We should be more appreciative of the scientific studies that reveal free
needles and syringes are misfiring."

Melbourne Inner City Needle Exchange Service manager Chris Hardy said drug
deaths would be significantly higher without exchange programs.

"These programs have been proven to keep disease rates down," Ms Hardy said.

"I don't believe people are encouraged to take drugs because they get access
to clean needles.

"Discontinuing needle exchange programs could lead to people sharing needles
and that would increase the incidence of blood-borne viruses."

Kairos editor Brian Castanelli said the comments were fully supported by the
magazine and Archbishop Pell.

"Kairos is the Archbishop's mouthpiece," Mr Castanelli said.

"If we didn't support Dr Santamaria's article it would not have been
published."

Archbishop Pell did not return the Leader's calls before press time.