Free crack pipes to be handed out in Vancouver

[The Straight Story]

Health officials in Vancouver say they will launch a pilot project later this year to distribute clean, unused crack pipes to drug users.

While heroin users can pick up clean needles from needle-exchange programs or the city's controversial safe-injection site, crack pipes are more difficult to come by.

Some crack smokers can afford to buy small glass or Pyrex stems to use as pipes. Others fashion makeshift pipes from bottles, cans or even hollow car antennas. And in many cases, they just simply share, potentially putting themselves at risk of contracting disease.

It's part of the city's harm-reduction strategy that seeks to reduce the transmission of disease while ensuring health-care and social workers are able to interact with hard-to-reach drug addicts.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2011/07/31/bc-crackpipes.html

[GKirk]

1. Is there much worry about crack pipe

sharing?

[The Straight Story]

2. Not sure, I never share mine

;)

[DontTreadOnMe]

4. Hep C can be transmitted by sharing pipes

so, yes -- it is a serious health problem

[saras]

6. I think the question is "is there much worry about crack pipe sharing in Vancouver, BC"

"...a growing body of evidence that smoking crack cocaine increases the risk of diseases such as HIV and hepatitis.

In a small handful of cities, including Calgary and Winnipeg, local health authorities pass out crack pipes. Others prefer to only hand out mouth pieces, which users can place on their own pipes to avoid exposing themselves to others' saliva and blood.

And in others still, the job of distributing either mouth pieces or pipes is left to local community groups."


"There is a huge stigma against people who use crack, more intense than the stigma for those who use heroin."

"The calls for free crack pipes comes as advocates in Vancouver also push for a safe-inhalation site, where crack users could smoke the drug in the presence of health-care workers, who would respond to overdoses. Any decision on such a site will likely have to wait until the Supreme Court of Canada rules on the future of the city's safe-injection site, known as Insite."


Myself, I have no idea whether this stuff will work. But I'll give them credit for taking the political flak and trying, because the other approach sure the hell isn't working. It wouldn't take much to be better. And if it doesn't work, they'll try something else.

[formercia]

7. Hepatitis, Herpes,Clap,and other skank.

Drug user aren't known for good personal Hygiene.

[jberryhill]

3. They Should First See How This Worked Out In Washington, DC

[dorkulon]

5. Seems a bit silly.

People pass around bongs too--and joints, and weed-pipes. Even with the free pipes, they'll still pass them around if they're sharing drugs. And the disease-spreading threat is nothing compared to needles.

[Major Hogwash]

8. They're handing out dictionaries in Idaho, but so far no effects have been noticed.

Most of the people here just put it on the shelf and then call their relatives to come over and stare at the one book they have on their newly created "book shelf".

Goll-oll-ee, that sure is a nice book shelf ya got there, Clem.
Thanks, Lem.

LoL