It may seem counter intuitive to fight a drug problem by allowing people to exchange their used syringes for new, clean ones.
But the move to do just that by a St. Paul clinic makes goods sense.
And they’re not alone. International Falls is listed among Duluth and several other locations in the state as being part of the North American Syringe Exchange Network’s Minnesota program.
The opioid epidemic was created when many regular folks found their prescription painkillers to be too expensive or too hard to get and turned to injectable drugs like heroin. Thousands of people are dying in the United States each year as a result.
But these people aren’t just dying from overdoses. Some of these addicts are also at risk of illnesses like hepatitis C and HIV, among other infections, which can be spread in a community.
Also at issue is the number of used needles people are finding in some communities, including in Borderland.
St. Paul’s new needle exchange hopes to keep drug addicts as healthy as possible by not only allowing them to drop off used needles and pick up clean ones, but also will provide them with safety containers for used needles, HIV and hep C tests, and naloxone, the drug that will reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.
The St. Paul clinic is attempting to be a place for people who cannot, or don’t feel comfortable, accessing regular clinics, and to provide help to addicts that, in the long run, can make for a safer and healthier community for all its residents.
Organizers and proponents of needle-plus education programs say research shows that exchanges are an effective way to address overdose deaths and to protect the health of many, many people.
And if there’s any doubt about positive outcomes expected, a five-year grant to open the clinic, at an annual cost of $125,000, should provide a good time period for which to study its effectiveness.
Providing clean needles isn’t a measure of support of using illegal drugs. Instead, it’s a measure of support to communities and all of their residents.
