A Proven Technique: Harm Reduction

By Keaton S.

                                                 A Proven Technique: Harm Reduction


Harm reduction is an approach that emphasizes engaging directly with people who use drugs to prevent overdose and infectious disease transmission, improve the physical, mental, and social wellbeing of those served, and offer low-threshold options for accessing substance use disorder treatment and other health care services.

Harm reduction plays an important part in addressing substance use disorders through prevention, treatment, and recovery where individuals who use substances set their own goals. Harm reduction organizations incorporate a spectrum of strategies that meet people “where they are” on their own terms, and may serve as a pathway to additional prevention, treatment, and recovery services. Harm reduction works by addressing broader health and social issues through improved policies, programs, and practices.


Why are Harm Reduction Services Needed?


The U.S. is experiencing the most significant substance use and overdose epidemic it has ever faced, exacerbated by a worldwide pandemic, and driven by the proliferation of highly potent synthetic opioids containing primarily fentanyl and other analogues.


Harm reduction services save lives by being available and accessible in a matter that emphasizes the need for humility and compassion toward people who use drugs. Harm reduction plays a significant role in preventing drug-related deaths and offering access to healthcare, social services, and treatment. These services decrease overdose fatalities, acute life-threatening infections related to unsterile drug injection, and chronic diseases such as HIV/HCV.


Harm Reduction's Place in and Among Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery


A comprehensive prevention strategy, harm reduction is part of the continuum of care. Harm reduction approaches have proven to prevent death, injury, disease, overdose, and substance misuse. Harm reduction is effective in addressing the public health epidemic involving substance use as well as infectious disease and other harms associated with drug use. Specifically, harm reduction services can:

  • Connect individuals to overdose education, counseling, and referral to treatment for infectious diseases and substance use disorders.

  • Distribute opioid overdose reversal medications (e.g., naloxone) to individuals at risk of overdose, or to those who might respond to an overdose.

  • Lessen harms associated with drug use and related behaviors that increase the risk of infectious diseases, including HIV, viral hepatitis, and bacterial and fungal infections.

  • Reduce infectious disease transmission among people who use drugs, including those who inject drugs by equipping them with accurate information and facilitating referral to resources.

  • Reduce overdose deaths, promote linkages to care, facilitate co-location of services as part of a comprehensive, integrated approach.

  • Reduce stigma associated with substance use and co-occurring disorders

  • Promote a philosophy of hope and healing by utilizing those with lived experience of recovery in the management of harm reduction services, and connecting those who have expressed interest to treatment, peer support workers and other recovery support services.
Colorado, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Harm Reduction for Young People

By Keaton S.
Image
 Harm Reduction for Young People Young adults who use drugs face a wide array of sociopolitical, organizational, and structural barriers to accessing harm reduction services, including stigma and social condemnation associated with substance use, fear of law enforcement, and, in some settings, policies that restrict access on the basis of age. Expansion of harm reduction education in school health curriculum, nurse distribution of harm reduction materials, and naloxone access in schools may require changes to local laws. Good Samaritan laws, which encourage people to call for help if they are witnessing an overdose, can encourage help-seeking and engagement by protecting witnesses from drug-related arrests. In areas where syringes are criminalized, fear of arrest may be even more pronounced, and individuals may avoid seeking out harm reduction services. The expansion of harm reduction approaches into nontraditional venues, should include places such as:  pharmacies,  schools,  drop-in
Read more

There is HOPE

By Keaton S.
Image
  There is HOPE "Recovery is a process. It takes time. It takes patience. It takes everything you've got."  Whether a person is new to recovery or a person has tried one or more pathways to recovery, the path to recovery is hard. No one single pathway or recovery option is for everyone. While the path of recovery may be bumpy, there is HOPE! Everyone’s journey through recovery looks different and with the endless options available to people in all stages of recovery, this can be intimidating. A person doesn’t need to take on this monumental decision alone. Peer Support Specialists offer a  range of activities, services and interactions between people who share similar experiences of being diagnosed with mental health conditions, substance use disorders, or both. By sharing their own lived experience and practical guidance, peer support workers help people to develop their own goals, create strategies for self-­‐empowerment, and take concrete steps towards building fulfill
Read more