Limits of Harm Reduction
We either do what works, as challenging as that may be, or we accept the consequences of failure.
Tag: harm reduction
High Potency THC – an update
“choosing to use lower-potency cannabis products could help to make cannabis use safer and offers a sensible strategy for harm reduction.”
Read MoreA Problem In Prescribing — Part 2
I did ask a veteran ER physician for one suggestion that he felt would actually help both doctor and patient in the ER setting. His answer: Peer Support services.
Read MoreNo More Nicotine?
CDC reports that tobacco use is “…the leading cause of preventable disease, disability, and death in the U.S.” Nothing else comes close…
Read MoreGetting Sober. And Not Getting Sober.
Research into long-term recovery has been prominent in the past — why not revive it?
Read MoreAn Update on Needle Exchange
The roots of opposition are on an emotional level that doesn’t readily respond to the logic of science. The danger is that the public will be persuaded and take actions that are ultimately not in their own best interests.
Read MoreIn the News: Do Safe Injection Sites Work?
That’s not a large percent of the user population, but it’s among the sickest. That along might be enough to justify the investment; I’m sure a number of lives have been saved along the way.
Read MoreNeedle Exchange Backlash
Nonetheless, in most instances it’s an a priori resistance rooted in fear, rather than legitimate objections.
Read MoreNaltrexone versus Opioids
Not surprisingly, the vast majority of patients who drop out or otherwise leave maintenance programs return to heroin at rates of 80% or higher.
Read MoreIn the News: Harm Reduction in West Virginia
He compares the patients he treats, who are often homeless, to “outcasts” and ‘lepers”, who have been “derided, despised, and marginalized.”
Read MoreMethadone Maintenance and Crime
So even if drug use decreases, and clients continue on methadone, they don’t necessarily make the other much-desired (by society) changes — such as giving up crime.
Read MoreMedication Assisted Treatment
In terms of a comfortable detox, Suboxone was a success. In terms of a return to opiate use, it was a failure.
Read MoreHIV Mini-Epidemic
It makes perfect sense to do something that’s been shown to be effective at limiting one very important adverse consequence to the individual and society
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