HARM REDUCTION CONFERENCE DRAWS HEALTH PROFESSIONALS

Addressing The Treatment And Attitudes Towards Marginalized People

Harm reduction begins with how you think.

After reflecting on the people lost to their risky life and how
marginalized some segments of the community are, street nurse Kathy
Wrath, former street nurse and current CNC nursing instructor Bruce
Self and UNBC associate professor in the school of social work,
Heather Peters, felt compelled to do something about the treatment
and attitudes towards those most marginalized.

Last Friday, 273 front line workers in health and social services as
well as students just entering the professions, gathered at the
community campus for a Harm Reductions in Rural and Northern
Communities conference. Knowing how pivotal physicians are in the
effective assessment and treatment of marginalized people, the group
tailored many of the subjects to this group.

"Subjects were tailored to physicians' needs, but we were
disappointed they didn't turn out for the conference," Peters said.

"Doctors are the gatekeepers for patient care. They are the ones who
can really bring down barriers. But old-fashioned thinking is a
primary barrier."

In an effort to bring out the doctors, the group specifically engaged
speakers which led them to offering the proper educational credits
each physician must accrue each year.

Dr. Gabor Mate, renowned author and journalist, currently works as a
staff physician at the Portland Clinic in Vancouver's downtown east
side where his patients are people with addictions, HIV, mental
illness and other problems.

Nichola Malim Hall, is one of the founding members of the
Vancouver-based organization From Grief to Action: Association of
Families and Friends of Drug Users. She and husband Ray have two sons
who are in recovery from addictions. Her work in raising awareness of
addiction as a disease won Nichola a YWCA Woman of Distinction Award.

Dr. Martin Schechter, UBC professor, is inspiring and practical about
the idea of harm reduction and humane care for marginalized
populations. He is well known and highly regarded for his work in this field.

Northern Health Medical Health Officer, Dr. William Osei, has many
years of experience in public health including management and control
of communicable diseases as well as research and training in Canada and abroad.

Local doctor, Jon Fine, clinical associate professor in UBC
Department of Family Medicine, family physician and mental health
physician with Northern Health assisted with the conference organization.

Regardless of the lack of doctors in attendance, Wrath said those who
chose to attend gained understanding, knowledge and a better
appreciation for the value of harm reduction. Although organizers
were told if they didn't engage the doctors, their efforts were
wasted, Wrath said it was still a valuable conference which spread
awareness of the need for harm reduction strategies.

"This needs to become bigger than our small organizing group," Peters said.

"Every community group and agency needs training in harm reduction as
part of their organizational mandate."

Wrath said Northern Health has been working on harm reduction
strategies and can be approached to aid groups to deal with this issue.

"Harm reduction is about everyone," she said.

"In all fairness, doctors don't necessarily have the time to spend
with these type of patients but they are an integral part of the
solution. It's about empowering people to make the right choices."

For information on how to incorporate harm reduction, contact Kathy
Wrath 250-991-7571 or Heather Peters 250-991-7519.