Do needle and syringe programs condone the use of drugs?

• Click on the documents below for information regarding this question:

Needle and Syringe Programs: your questions answered - Australian government Department of Health and Ageing (PDF 161 KB)

Needle and Syringe Programs: a review of the evidence - Australian government Department of Health and Ageing (PDF 228 KB)

Is it legal to distribute needles and syringes to people who inject drugs?

• The Western Australian Poisons Amendment Act (1994) allows approved organisations to provide sterile injecting equipment to people who inject drugs.
• Any organisation that operates an NSP must meet specific requirements as stated in the Poisons Amendment Regulations 1994 and be approved under the Act by the Commissioner of Health.

Who uses needle and syringes?

• People who inject drugs do not fall neatly into any particular ethnic or socio-economic group, nor are users found solely in urban settings.
• Approximately 20% of the total number of needles and syringes are distributed in WA by non-metropolitan NSPs.

• Nationally, it has been noted that there is an increase in injecting drug use in Indigenous youth, and in people from culturally and linguistically diverse background.
• This emerging trend calls for programs that are culturally and linguistically appropriate.
• It is difficult to estimate the number of injecting drug users (IDU) due to the illegal nature of the activity.
• Recent figures from the 2004 national drug strategy household survey estimated that nationally, 73,800 people aged 14 years and over had injected drugs in the last 12 months.
• According to the survey, meth/amphetamines were the most commonly injected drug in the last 12 months, followed by heroin, steroids, other opiates, cocaine and methadone.
  
• Not every IDU injects daily. Some drug users may inject drugs occasionally, only on weekends or special occasions, and/or when they have access to their drug of preference.
• Many young people use drugs experimentally.
• Not every injecting drug user is homeless or unemployed, and not every user wants to stop using.
• Many users are still living at home, attending school, university and /or playing sport.

Do Needle and Syringe Programs increase the number of unsafely disposed needles and syringes?

• The needles and syringes distributed by NSP are distributed with a container to dispose of used items safely.
• NSP staff are trained to provide information and education to clients, with a view to encourage safer injecting practices and safer disposal.

Is there a minimum age limit for clients to access sterile injecting equipment from a Needle and Syringe Program?

• The Poisons Amendment Regulations 1994 refers to NSP clients only as “person”.
• That is, there is no mention of a minimum age at which a person may need access or be denied access to an NSP.
• NSP staff are advised to follow harm reduction principles and assess whether refusal or access will pose an immediate perceived health risk to the juvenile client. It is recommended that when developing their policies, NSPs have explicit guidelines regarding juvenile access to sterile injecting equipment.