STUDY SUPPORTS THREE SAFE-CONSUMPTION SITES

Site won't achieve it goals, however, without comprehensive support
system, says study's lead author

There's an excellent chance that a safe-consumption site in Victoria
would improve the health of the city's addict population, reduce the
spread of HIV and help at least some IV drug users kick the habit.

But none of that will happen unless the Vancouver Island Health
Authority provides a comprehensive support system of addiction
treatment and counselling services.

Those were the two main findings of a year-long study on the
feasibility of a safe-consumption site in the City of Victoria that
was released Tuesday at City Hall.

Authored by Dr. Benedikt Fischer, the 80-page report recommends that
Victoria pursue a decentralized model consisting of one large and two
smaller safe consumption sites catering to not only IV drug users, but
crystal methamphetamine and crack addicts as well.

However, Fischer's report identified "acute gaps" in available
addiction treatment services in Victoria that would have to be filled
to ensure the success of a safe consumption site.

"There's no sense in doing this if the people who want to access
addiction treatment can't get it," Fischer said during a press
conference Tuesday at city hall. "It doesn't make any sense to tell
these people 'please come back in three months.' In fact, it doesn't
make a lot of sense to tell them to come back in 48 hours."

Fischer said the biggest gaps exist in the area of "residential and
long-term addiction care" and stressed that Victoria needs wide scope
of services to address various levels of need.

VIHA medical health officer Dr. Murray Fyfe, expressed concern about
gaps in treatment services but said that VIHA has made efforts to
improve services in recent years.

Decisions on any additional services will have to wait until board
members and the Ministry of Health have had a chance to review the
report, Fyfe added.

"This report needs to go through an appropriate process before making
any decisions on what services we can support," Fyfe said.

The release of the $60,000 study -- VIHA covered $50,000 of the cost
while the city paid the rest -- sets the stage for Victoria Mayor Alan
Lowe to apply for an exemption under Section 56 of the Controlled Drug
and Substance Act, the same legal exemption that paved the way for
InSite, Vancouver's safe-consumption-site pilot project.

However, Prime Minister Stephen Harper made it clear during a visit to
Victoria last year his government will not support any more
safe-consumption sites until research can show the Vancouver model is
working.

Fischer's report notes that some European consumption sites operated
covertly for years before gaining legal approval.

Neither Lowe nor Fyfe would speculate on how they might move forward
should the Harper government refuse the exemption.

Fyfe said the safe-consumption site would likely include space for a
needle-exchange service to replace the one currently run by AIDS
Vancouver Island on Cormorant Street.

Fischer's report estimates it would cost about $1.2 million a year to
operate the three sites.

Victoria Deputy Police Chief Bill Naughton said a safe-consumption
site would take much of the visible drug activity off local streets
and put it in a controlled setting. Such a facility would also provide
police with a much-needed place to take addicts they regularly roust
from doorways and downtown alleys.

"When you tell a guy sleeping in a doorway to move along, the first
thing they'll say is 'Well, where do you want me to go?'" Naughton
said. "You need a good answer to that question."