HRV erected the temporary site on the corner of Pandora and Vancouver on May 31st  to mark the one year anniversary of the closure of the Cormorant Street needle exchange.  The GNX was also established in opposition to VIHA’s no-go-zone surrounding St. Andrew’s School.

“The GNX has distributed almost 7500 syringes and recovered approximately 5000 in 3 months. VIHA is clearly in denial of the immediate health care needs within that 2 block radius,” said Kim Toombs, spokesperson for HRV.  “The no-go-zone is a simply a risk aversion tactic on the part of VIHA; they have not done the necessary education and outreach in the community to address the concerns of the school or the other neighbours.”

Victoria, Coast Salish Territories - HRV continues to support people who use illicit drugs, and with recent developments around a potential site for a new fixed site needle exchange, it believes that community support is more important than ever.

“We are no further ahead with comprehensive health services for people who use illicit drugs than we were prior to the closure Cormorant St. location”, says Heather Hobbs of HRV. “We recognize the lack of site choice and the desperation people face. A new fixed site is a critical part of harm reduction in Victoria but we still need comprehensive services, including multiple sites providing the full gamut of harm reduction supplies, a variety of service delivery options, and supervised consumption services.  Most importantly, people who use drugs must be involved in the development, delivery and evaluation of these services.”

Harm Reduction Victoria is currently developing an education series about health services and harm reduction.

“Due to the lack of appropriate education and information coming from VIHA, we feel that it is important for people to have access to accurate information about harm reduction in a local context”, says Heather Hobbs, a spokesperson for Harm Reduction Victoria.

To kick start the education series, on October 1st, 2009 HRV will be holding an event called "InForum: Still Not Fixed.”  The InForum will discuss how health facilities like needle exchanges and supervised injection sites can operate safely within communities.  
 

For information:

Kim Toombs, 250-893-0853, harmreductionvictoria@gmail.com

 
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Tamara Herman
Research Coordinator
Vancouver Island Public Interest Research Group (VIPIRG)

Phone: (250) 472-4386
Fax: (250) 721-7285
Email: research@vipirg.ca
Web: www.vipirg.ca
Office: UVic student union building room B122
Mail: PO Box 3035 Stn CSC, Victoria, BC, Lekwungen & WSANEC Territories, V8W 3P3