Safe Injection Sites

         

RUNNING          HEAD: SAFE INJECTION SITE                     4

Safe Injection Sites          
         HIV has killed more than 25 million people since 1981 alone (Doctors without borders, 2012). One of the more common reasons, of a person dying from HIV is from injection with an unsafe needle. When mention of a safe injection site circled about being opened in opened in Ottawa. Not all responses were in a positive manner. In my opinion, I believe that a safe injection site should be opened in Ottawa, as well as other Canadian cities. According to CBC News, Ottawa has some of the highest rates of HIV infection and drug overdoses in the country (2013). It is about time we finally stood up and did something for those who are in need, although, this is only a mock trial site more than 100 people crammed into a small building (CBC, 2013) showing that this service is in great demand. Safe injection sites are also the purpose of many controversial conversations since many just see it as a way for us to say that drugs are okay, and here let us give you a safe place to 'shoot up'. I on the other hand, believe that it is a great way to reduce HIV and possibly inform them on the affects of using.

         According to the Canadian AIDS Society, the average price of treating someone with HIV is 1.3 million and that is just the number for a person who has been infected (2011). Why should our tax money ne put into treating someone who has a disease, when we could put the money into creating more safe injection sites to help prevent the problem. When visiting a safe injection site, you will always be provided with what you need, all while in a safe and clean environment. Usually you are given a "safe" kit, mostly formed from, a syringe, sterile water, a cooker and a plastic band to tie around the arm (CBC News, 2013). That is not the only thing that makes these places safe, specialists (nursing staff) are always around just in case something does happen, they are on call to revive if needed. Rick Sproule, a former addict comments that he understands the concern over the proposed site, but that maintaining the status quo won't fix the real problem in the long run (CBC News, 2013). He does have a point, all we are doing is getting them off the street and not using in a safe environment, it is not stopping the use of drugs overall, nor will that be the case in the long run.

         A safe injection site is not all about just giving people the opportunity to use in a clean environment, it is also to raise awareness. Users can go in as they would like without the feeling that they are being judged, and get informed on what using can do to them in the long run. Of course, it is up to them if they want to stop. That is another reason why I am supporting safe injection sites, they offer the community as well as users, pertinent information to raise awareness of what is going on. In a subliminal way, they are trying to get the users to stop, without it being so obvious, that way, the users feel comfortable in coming back to use the services at hand. According to CAMH, around 1.7 percent of Ontario's adults have used cocaine in the past year (2007), this survey is not recent, and the numbers would be highly elevated at this point in time since using has become more and more common within an everyday community.

         Although, these services will not reduce usage, it will protect users from contracting HIV. Some of the main reasons why people are against the idea is why would we put our tax money into something that will allow users to think it's okay to do drugs. The answer is, we are not. We are not telling them it is okay to do drugs, all we are promoting is a safe place where they can come and feel comfortable to administrate their drug of choice with clean tools. Reducing the money we put in for HIV treatments. Realistically, there is no way to stop everyone's addiction, but there are ways that we can reduce the long term prognosis of some of these drugs. In the case of the safe injection site in Ottawa. The mayor of the town, as well as the police chief do not approve of what is going on in their town. Saying that they should focus on treatment programs for addicts, they also have great concern that there will be public safety around the sites.

         Every person is allowed to have their own opinion, many tend to judge on how people believe in things. Just because we all do not agree on the safe injection sites, it is no reason to start judging other people. We are all one in the battle to stop drug use, and this is just one of the many ways we are trying to lessen it. As stated, I am for the creation of the safe injection site and hope to see more around Canadian cities in the near future. I believe it provides users with a great educational experience, and can also be helpful to educate the community on what is going on. It also will help users stop using on the street or even sharing needles since they can not get their own 'clean' ones, and lessen the risk of contracting some sort of HIV.


         

References

Canadian AIDS Society (2011). Canadian AIDS society: Cost of HIV is 1.3 million per person
         infected. Canadian AIDS Society. Retrieved April 5th, 2014, from http://www.cdnaids.ca/
CBC News(2013). Safe injection proponents show off mock site in Ottawa. CBC News.          Retrieved April 5th, 2014 from http://cbcnews.ca/
Doctors without borders (2012). HIV/AIDS. Doctors without borders. Retrieved April 5th, 2014,          from http://www.msf.ca/.