With the DTES comprising such a large concentration of substance abuse and injection drug users, its no wonder its 
home to addiction treatment considered novel and experimental. The most well known is Insite- the legal safe injection site operated by Vancouver Coastal Health and openly supported by the City of Vancouver, the Vancouver Police Department, and other community bodies and professionals in the field of addiction.
Insite is a North America’s first legal safe injection site where people can go to inject their own drugs and connect to addiction, health care and community services. For many injection drug users, Insite is the first step to recovery by reaching out to a hard to reach, marginalized population. It currently operates under a constitutional exception to the Controlled Drug and Substances Act; the BC Supreme Court ruled in May that the federal government does not have the authority to shut down Insite and gave the government until a year to amend the country’s drug laws to allow for medical use of drugs if tied to a health care initiative. The federal government is currently appealing that decision.
Research has shown that Insite is effective in preventing the loss of life from overdoses, decreasing needle sharing and other risky behaviors amongst local intravenous drug users, increasing the access and uptake of addiction treatment and decreasing public injection and injection-related disorder. A May 2008 poll found that of over 200 overdose annually there were no fatalities and that Insite users were twice as likely to engage in addiction and health services than non-Insite users. According to the BC Center for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, the body that conducts independent research on Insite to examine its impact, they found among other things:
• Insite is leading to increased uptake into detoxification programs and addiction treatment. (New England Journal of Medicine)
• Insite has not led to an increase in drug-related crime, rates of arrest for drug trafficking, assaults and robbery were similar after the facility’s opening and rates of vehicle break-ins/theft declined significantly. (Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy)
• Insite has reduced the number of people injecting in public and the amount of injection-related litter in the Downtown Eastside. (Canadian Medical Association Journal)
• Insite is attracting the highest-risk users – those more likely to be vulnerable to HIV infection and overdose, and who were contributing to problems of public drug use and unsafe syringe disposal. (American Journal of Preventive Medicine)
The effectiveness and relevance of Vancouver’s Insite safe injection site is a much debated topic. The evidence presented in favor of the safe injection site is heavily focused on getting addicts and drug related materials off the streets, decreasing overdose deaths and injection associated disease spread, improving users’ overall health, and providing an outlet for the most hard to reach to access help and treatment services- the pinnacle of harm reduction. Although controversial and experimental, Insite is a radical transformational approach to addiction by actively changing the community and the way addicts think about their lives and addictions, and how they live. Insite seeks to transform the lives of a marginalized population in a stepwise manner- first by improving their health conditions then facilitating access to help and treatment followed by integration into the array of programs Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) operates such as societal reintegration.
The integration of Insite with VCH and its comprehensive services as well as the community support for the safe injection site (Police, City Hall, professionals, etc) contribute to its overall impact and effectiveness at addressing addiction in the DTES. This integration with a host of other addiction services also creates a sustainable solution by providing a long term means of supporting and maintaining the change. Insite’s success and benefits as an experimental approach to addiction also greatly increase its impact around the world to other areas with addiction. Its scale is effective as Instie’s programs reach those most affected and of the greatest need.
This novel approach to addiction and its residual effects in the DTES appears to be making strides into treatment of drug addiction. These types of experimental treatments for addiction are what is needed over traditional enforcement methods- a view that is increasing in research support.
HEROIN IS NOT MEDICINE
By homelesschampions
PLEASE DON’T GIVE MY KIDS HEROIN AND CALL IT TREATMENT
Expert on what a death sentence, HEROIN is the most destructable, potent, toxic drug on the planet.So why would you call it treatment,and to give it out as a medicine. In the dtes of vancouver they have a methadone program they called treatment,the addicts in this part of the country have turned it into a source of intoxication yes that’s right they get freakin high on it, if not they just up there dose.Prove to me that you could call this treatment. Heroin is ugly, to presribe it is dangerous the way i look at things if it’s okay for my children than ok for anyone. NOT i to call myself a addictions expert i deal and have dealt with thousands of addicts who have recovered i do not support heroin as treatment or methadone i support recovery like when you have a problem you fix it you don’t let the problem continue to rule the agenda you don’t support the problem you fix it this is the reason people stay addicted because you have a support program that has solutions at the bottom of the list, terminal addiction is the new wave of treatment in northamerica any one who has recovered had to stop feeding the demon, the sooner the better why do think we call it recovery. What ever there doing in the rest of the country it’s working but please don’t make any suggestion’s on how to fix the dtes.I consider myself a expert 25 years active addiction seven years practical recovery have a men’s house in the eastside of vancover. I consider myself as a test subject been there done it all today my only goal in life is to help change those who suffer, clean and sober is the goal a war you say yes but when the enemy is so called experts thowing bombs into the middle of the battle you have to look at the plan
I think there is no argument that Heroin, and other injection drugs, are incredibly destructive and damaging. They create major social and individual problems. Programs that give out drugs, such as methadone treatment and other experimental treatments are just that- they are experimental. Addiction is a disease that is difficult to understand fully, which makes treating it incredibly difficult. Individual addicts have differing needs and underlying causes of addiction that only compound the difficulty in treatment. Giving out drugs or synthetic drug treatments is a response to this difficulty. Traditional methods of dealing with addiction, such as detox or drug enforcement methods have been ineffective for addressing the issues of addiction due in part to these compounding circumstances. In addition, prescribing of Heroin in a controlled manner (as was done in the recent NAOMI study in the DTES) was only done for patients who had not seen any success in any other treatment program- it was an alternative for those who were not recovering through all currently available treatment options and this was not in support of terminal addiction. It is time to investigate alternative methods for helping addicts and the community as a whole. Programs that involve injection drugs and so called ‘free’ drugs have shown a great deal of success in curbing addictions and improving overall health of patients- these are benefits that directly affect well being of the addicts themselves and hardly in support of perpeutating their addiction.
I urge you to read the resources for Insite safe injection site regarding its benefits since being operational in the DTES, or the results release for the NAOMI study to consider the possible direct benefits to addicts that alternative treatments such as these may have.
I agree with the use of safe injection sites.I guess critics of such a project don’t really want to their hard-working tax paying dollars funding such projects. But if they do the math, over the long-run, there is a reduction in health-related costs that essentially offsets the investment cost.
However I am somewhat conflicted regarding true effectiveness – I view it as curing the “symptoms” rather than the root-cause itself. On a personal level, I had a friend that was an addict. Actually when I met him, he had changed 180 degrees, quit his old ways, got a job, started attending church etc. However several years after, one of my friends saw him in downtown East Hastings. He returned to his former ways – he became an addict again. An addiction is really difficult to break, and even then, changes can be compromised years later. These injection sites ensure safety, and people do can assist people in changing, but many do fall back into the vicious cycle. Any thoughts on this?
Addiction can be looked at as a disease- although an addict may go through treatment and overcome their addiction, they are never cured. Safe injection sites not only provide safety when using drugs, but they also provide access to treatment and health programs which assist in not only overcoming the addiction, but making life changes to control their addiction. Specifically with Insite, users can access the array of addiction and health services operated by Vancouver Coastal Health easily and with the support they may need. The idea is that users who may not know where to go or may require immense support and encouragement to seek out treatment can do so at a safe injection site, and feel comfortable enough to follow through. In this way Insite provides safe injection for decreasing disease and death, and reaches those in greatest need of treatment and support. However, addiction will not be cured and will be a factor for the rest of the individual’s life. Preventing relapse and maintaining a drug free life is outside the range of the services and benefits of Insite- these are issues associated with treatment programs that an addict can access through the safe injection site. Insite can be viewed as the first step in an addict’s path to actively transform their life.
I was surprised when I heard Insite for the first time. I thought it encouraged drug use by giving the drug users medical instructions on injection. When I get to know it better, I find it very humane and radical at the same time. Vancouver should be proud to have the insight to bring up this novel solution.
Thanks Arita. The initial view you took towards Insite is one that think, unfortunately, is the first response among residents of Vancouver and around the county and beyond. This may be due to poor media coverage or perhaps being ill-informed about its role in the community. The important thing I think is to have open access and dissemination information describing exactly what safe injection is, and perhaps more importantly what it is not, as well as research on the transformative changes its bringing about. All of these can be found on Insite’s homepage at http://www.vch.ca/sis.
If the organizers and supporters of Insite want safe injection to become a vehicle for treatment, the first step is showing people its benefits to addicts and the community as a whole.
THE SAFE INJECTION SITE HEROIN AS TREATMENT YADA YADA
Have you or any of your blog heads ever been addicted or do you ask only active addicts when you form your views and opinions. My self i was addicted for over twenty five years so i consider that i have a PHD in practical experience i understand the addicted mind like no other lab rat you may have chatted with. Today being clean for some seven years i feel i understand both sides of the fence again you might say hands on qualifications. Now I’ll start, saving life is one thing prolonging it is another, the fact the addicts do drugs is not going to stop to soon. My desire to stay high in addiction was quite strong a twenty five year bit is proof the fact that drugs were always near by only helped my cause but going into a bar and having a drink only to have the bartender tell you hey you need to slow down or are you sure you really need that drink, doesn’t happen all to often the bartender would get fired for not minding there own business or the patron would go elsewhere to indulge. thinking that because you have addiction support staff in a safe injection site helps is to me ironic here you are on one hand supporting safe injection and on the other asking the patron to stop this destruction as they are for the most part near death anyway near death means overdose. SUPPORT WITH ACCOUNTABILITY IS WHAT’S NEEDED not a freeway to hell in addiction the open freewill of addiction in our society is and has been killing my friends and our children long enough. the current scene is the ADDICTION AGENDA is making the support of terminal addiction a reality harm reduction is still a failure because there’s no accountability just give me what i want and mind your own freakin business my addiction my life gimme gimme ask no question tell no lies. Just to let know i can speak on behalf of both the addicted and the recovered mind to great length you may have just had a taste in this paragraph more to follow no time for punctuation
VANCOUVER HOSTS THE 2010 ADDICTION OLYMPICS
http://www.2010homelesschampions.ca
Sponsored by:
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
THE PROVINCE OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
THE CITY OF VANCOUVER
COASTAL HEALTH
THE VANCOUVER POLICE DEPARTMENT
THE JUDGES
THE CROWN PROSECUTORS
LEGAL AID
THE DEFENSE LAWYERS
PROBATION OFFICERS
CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTIONS
THE PIVOT LAW SOCIETY
CIVIL LIBERTIES OF B.C.
THE SAFE INJECTION SITE
THE NAOMI PROJECT
THE VANCOUVER AND AREA DRUG DEALER’S ASSOCIATION WELL REPRESENTED
THE CARNEGIE SLASH DRUG MART
VANDU
THE MANY PHARMACY’S WHO SUPPLY METHADONE
UNITED WE CAN RECYCLING
THE DTES WOMEN’S CENTER
YOUR CHILDREN AND MINE
FUTURE GENERATION’S OF ADDICT’S
AND THE TEN THOUSAND ACTIVE DRUG ADDICTS IN THE DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE
ADDICTION AND ROCKET SCIENCE”
By homelesschampions
”ADDICTION AND ROCKET SCIENCE” The cows have come home academics can look at lab rats chimps porch monkeys what ever. To really understand a disease you can never beat 25 years of practical experience. ”HANDS ON I SAY” In all my years of addiction i often pondered my reasons weaknesses etc. and why or how it all happened. In the end the most important thing that helped me stop was part education the understanding of why i am powerless the hope that my life could change and acceptance of who i was and what i had done to my life. Once i was at that point with these few simple jewels my willpower was slowly able to come back along with self esteem and all the other normal life skills i had been lacking and slowly had degenerated from my life.Clinical rhetoric can be very offensive to most because it dosen’t have a heart until we look at addiction as a human affliction we might as well be labrats ”clean and sober seven years” On another note when can a person who has been addicted have enough common sense to choose it seems to most only a dream most hardcore addicts feel that there addiction is terminal who new that even i could stop.
SURE I CARE
By homelesschampions
I’ve had a lot of time to reflect over the last seven years about the horror’s i went through in my addiction.There’s not a day goes by that i don’t think about it.I realize drugs and addiction are not going away to soon.I agree with treatment i agree with a lot of the mainstream programs that are available in general.The main reason i started my correspondence with you and many others is to bring attention to what i see as addiction out of control and being fed and enabled like you never seen, when i say to you we have the worst per capital addiction problem in northamerica i’m trying to relate the fate of a new generation of lost souls who will have a life not unlike mine but even worse it’s sad, and if you have the impression that i don’t care your wrong i spend countless hours doing outreach offering both hope and direction to those who still suffer, my motives are pure i care i’m frustrated and i would like to make a difference being legalistic angry or high and mighty would not be effective in the work i do.If i can make a difference in one life today it gives me hope for tommorow this video link is of a friend of mine who was addicted for over thirtyyears, today he’s five years clean and sober in the end all i could do as a friend was to stand beside him and let him know i care http://www.video.ca/video.php?id=153836422