Injection drug use concerns spur needle exchange in Selkirk
More than 1,000 kits have been distributed through the program since July 3: Health Authority
A new needle exchange pilot program aims to reduce harm among Selkirk residents who inject drugs such as heroin.
Since the program launched July 3, more than 1,000 kits have been handed out to clients according to Maxine Zasitko, public health manager with the Interlake-Eastern Regional Health Authority.
Selkirk's free, safe injection kits include sterile water, alcohol wipes, a tourniquet, a burner device for processing drugs, cotton, and a clean needle.
"We are a non-judgemental program," said Zasitko. The idea is to reduce harm to clients by reducing the chances of contracting HIV, Hepatitis C, or developing an infection.
Zasitko said needle exchange programs help entire communities stay healthy and there is evidence to back that up.
"We know that injection drug use ... or addiction really doesn't have any boundaries. This is not the first needle distribution program in Manitoba. We know that [programs like this] help to reduce disease." she said.
According to a recent article in the Selkirk Record, local residents have been discovering discarded needles in recent months.
Selkirk Mayor Larry Johannson told CBC a recent Record article was the first he had heard of his city's injection drug problem:
"To be perfectly honest with you, I haven't heard too much about it ... If there is a bit of a problem it looks like we're going to rectify it," he said in an interview on Radio Noon Friday.
"Every city has drugs as every city has crime,"Johannson said. "We trust in the RCMP out here to keep a lid on crime, to keep the lid on drugs and I think they do a great job for us."
The population of Selkirk is roughly 9,834 people.
Needle exchange kits can be picked up, confidentially, at Selkirk's public health office from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekdays.