France's Solution to Drug Addiction

[Chip (OP)]

source: http://www.theatlantic.com/news/archive/2016/10/france-drugs/503789/

the video can be seen at > http://www.theatlantic.com/video/index/276069/life-after-heroin-two-ex-junkies-pick-up-a-new-habit/

France's Solution to Drug Addiction



A new medical facility aims to give drug addicts a safe space to inject, but critics say it only perpetuates the problem.

Home to one of the city’s largest train stations, the neighborhood surrounding Paris’ Gare du Nord in the 10th arrondissement serves as a major transit hub for tens of thousands of people each day. It’s also one of the easiest spots in the French capital to find drugs.

It’s within this neighborhood that the French government will debut Friday a facility where drug addicts can safely take drugs under medical supervision— the first of its kind in the country. The facility, known as the Supervised Drug Injection Site (SCMR), is part of a national effort to address the spread of infection and overdosing among drug addicts. The site is expected to serve as many as 200 drug addicts daily and will cost the state an estimated 1.2 million euros, or $1.3 million, per year.

https://twitter.com/INDCRs/status/785840601967300608/photo/1
DrugConsumptionRooms @INDCRs
#ReductionDesRisques : La France ouvre enfin une #SalleDeConsommation à moindre risque à #Paris10. #SCMR

to see the whole article, graphics, video and links, take the source link at the top ...

[mickeyaye6989]

There's talk of opening one of those here in Toronto (thank god for Canada's liberal stance on drugs). We've already got a pretty excellent needle exchange progam (they even have a van that you can call and it will meet you where ever you are to drop off whatever the hell you need!) but there's no safe injection sites. Seems like the argument against it is always the same - that it just perpetuates the addiction problem - but I think people are finally realizing that these places just provide a watchful eye to reverse an OD, rather than help people get high.

If only they all realized that an addict is gonna take the damn drugs, so why not at least give em clean shit and a shot of Narcan if need be? In a perfect world, the gov't would take all the money spent on locking people up for drug possession, and spent it on rehabilitation and harm reduction services - then maybe we'd be in a different place with the so called "War on Drugs", eh? At least weed will be legal soon...

[Chip (OP)]

we have one in Sydney too ... but the odd thing is the occasional but regular police patrolling  (with sniffer dogs) of the closest train station to the Injecting Center -- it's about containment, i guess but it's still unnerving for the casual traveler.

Years ago, I was picked up by the dogs at the spot i speak of as i was taking some pot home after visiting a friend in the area and got (strike 1 of 3) a "Cannabis Caution" ticket. damn !

i'd love to hear how other countries police the immediate surrounds of their Injecting place, should that come to pass.

I hope you get one because i think they're a wonderful idea -- we get to feel a little love where there is often slim pickings, if any at all.