Needles Exchange Program

Needles Exchange Program

Jonathan Smith

HLTH 252-B05

Judy Sandlin

June 4, 2011

The Needle Exchange program initially began in Europe. The needle exchange program is designed for injecting drug users the turn in their used needles for new one, which in turn will try to combat the spread infectious diseases such as HIV. The Needle Exchange Program does not encourage drug use, what they are trying to do is save lives by putting as much of a stop to the spread of infectious diseases as possible. Although this is a legal program I am really on the fence with this one. I understand wanting to save lives by stopping the spread of disease, but what about saving lives by stopping drug use. If you give a drug user the tools to commit the crime, then you are just as bad as they are. I ask myself this question, which kills more people every year, disease passed through sharing needles or drug overdoses and drug related crimes? I think the program should be closed down. The drug usage will not get better when you are helping it right along. If the money spent on this program was put toward medical research on finding a cure for infectious diseases passed through sharing needles I think America would benefit from it.

Prior to this assignment I had no idea such programs existed. I really never put much thought into how injecting drug users got their supplies. Like I stated before I am in the middle on this one. I cannot say I support The Needle Exchange Program. I think drug users are bad, but so are the ones exchanging their old drug paraphernalia for new drug paraphernalia. Yes lives might be being saved, but who is to say more lives are being saved from disease control than drug control. I think America as a nation need to try and rehabilitate drug users by helping put a stop to drug use rather than just help disease control. I will end by saying if this program was linked to a substance abuse program I would feel this was a much more effective strategy. If they were breaking the cycle of substance abuse my support would go much on this subject.

References

(2001, June) Needle Exchange Facts. Retrieved from http://www.aidsaction.org/legislation/pdf/Policy_Facts-Needle_Exchange2.pdf

(2005, December) Syringe Exchange Programs. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/idu/facts/aed_idu_syr.pdf