METHADONE PROGRAM SOUGHT FOR HEROIN USERS

Heroin has beaten a path from Vancouver's back alleys to Calgary's
suburbs, fueled by this city's hot economy and a new generation attracted
by the drug-trappings of the fashion and entertainment world.

Calgary has an estimated 2,000 to 3,000 users of heroin and opiates. Heroin
overdoses result in about 20 related deaths a year. Yet Calgary is the only
major city in North America without a methadone-treatment program.

Doctors are pressing for a treatment program for the rising number of
addicts to head off the drug crisis Vancouver is facing now.

"We are encountering heroin more than we ever have in the past,' said Det.
Steve Walton of the Calgary police drug unit.

`And the newest and most disturbing trend is that young people are starting
to smoke it.'

Across the continent and around the world, police and drug-enforcement
officers are fighting the glamorization of what's known as `heroin chic'.
Hollywood has sympathetically portrayed it in films for decades, and such
stars as Christian Slater, singer Courtney Love, the late River Phoenix and
Robert Downey Jr. have publicly fought - and sometimes lost-battles with
the drug.

While cocaine is still the illicit king of the `hard' high in Calgary,
heroin is the black jack - elusive, seductive and deadly for many.

Bad heroin has led to the overdose deaths of more than 200 people across
B.C. in the past six months alone, a 37-per-cent increase over about 147
overdose deaths during the same period last year.

A study prepared for the Calgary Regional Health Authority suggests that up
to 400 of the city's estimated 2,000 to 3,000 heroin and opiate users would
be willing to enter a methadone program if one was available.

Methadone is a legal narcotic used as a substitute to treat heroin
addiction. Properly prescribed, it is not intoxicating and suppresses
narcotic withdrawal for 24 to 36 hours while relieving craving. It can be
addictive but is believed to be less-damaging than heroin.

`It's not going to solve all the drug problems in Calgary, but we felt like
there would be a significant number who would be helped.' said Dr. Dale
Guenter, a physician at the Southern Alberta Clinic in Calgary contracted
by the CRHA to determine the need for a program.

Guenter, who is launching a research project to determine the demographics
of Calgary's IV drug users, estimates it would cost $500,000 to set up a
methadone program.

Edmonton, Regina, Saskatoon, Toronto and Vancouver have offered this
treatment for several years, but Calgarians seeking methadone to fight
their heroin addictions are told they must leave town to get it.

The CRHA is reviewing Guenter's report. Dr. Carolyn Pinn, deputy medical
officer of health, said that the region will continue to work with
community groups, including the police and AADAC, to determine the
`appropriateness' of a methadone program.

Some doctors are critical of the delay in starting a program in Calgary.

`I have an impression that there has been a continual reluctance from
certain corners like the police, who seem to think if we don't have a
methadone program, the people addicted to opiates will then go elsewhere.'
said Dr. Nady El-Guebaly, head of the Foothills Hospital addiction centre.

`There's a whole range of approaches at the moment that we're not even
beginning to tackle or consider,' he said, adding, `this is an essential
service.'

Checked-by: Mike Gogulski