FREE HEROIN AND NURSING CARE? FORGET IT

Re: Free heroin (NEWS Views, Feb. 9).

Health Canada has okayed a program that will give drug addicts free
heroin. This is part of a large program that has been created to
provide users with injection sites, clean needles, heroin with known
ingredients and nurses to monitor its use.

This is all in an effort to reduce the amount of users and/or to
provide safe sites for their habit.

Although everyone has a desire to see these people overcome their
addiction for the sake of themselves and for the community as a whole,
the idea of giving out free heroin does not sound like money well spent.

Although some of these users may see this program as a way out of
their problem, the vast majority will only see this as a 'free ride'
(literally). This is like offering a roulette player free money to
play on the ponies in an effort to get him to quit gambling.

As we all know, the cardinal rule to addictions is that the user has
to want to quit. Offering free drugs will in no way indicate to us
which user wants to quit and which just wants an added boost. Although
the success rate of rehab programs is not great, it still seems to be
a better alternative.

As well, being a government-employed nurse, I do not like the idea of
nurses being used to babysit these people while they shoot up with
free heroin. Couldn't our expertise be used more wisely in the system
such as on a ward where someone is waiting for a hip
replacement?

Mike Sands RN

Maple Ridge