Diseases and Infections can quickly spread from person to person, when needles and other equipment are shared. Safe injection sites provide clean needles and other equipment thus greatly reducing the risk of infection.
By providing clean equipment safe injection sites greatly lower the risk of disease. Also, safe injection sites have medical staff available in case of overdose or other emergencies.
Primarily safe injection sites reduce your risk of getting diseases or overdosing. Furthermore, numerous studies have demonstrated that safe injection sites can increase the likelihood someone will seek treatment for their substance use disorder and decrease the amount drugs a person uses.
Safe injection sites have connected many users to social services which opens up new possibilities to housing and employment assistance.
Yes, staff will not disclose any of your information.
No, most safe injection sites allow users to just drop in during operating hours.
Fentanyl is an synthetic (lab made) opioid which is much more potent than other opioids (i.e. morphine, heroin). Fentanyl is very toxic, and even a small amount can be deadly. It is sometimes mixed with other drugs because it is cheaper to produce.
In BC, naloxone kits are available at many community pharmacies and safe injection sites. Along with the kits (which are free), pharmacists will teach you the signs and symptoms of overdose.
Diseases like HIV and hepatitis can be spread easily and quickly from person to person. When injecting a drug, some blood may get into the needle or other supplies. If for example, the person using a needle has a disease like HIV or hepatitis, some of their blood will likely still be in the needle when someone else uses it.
Yes, regardless of how the drug is injected, if it enters the body along with the blood of another person, the risk of disease is extremely high.
Mixing drugs with other drugs or alcohol can increase the effects of the drugs which in turn can increase the risk of overdose and death.