Ruth Dreifuss: "Harm Reduction works"

Monday, 22 March 1999

Geneva, Switzerland

"Harm Reduction works," declared President of the Swiss Confederation Ruth Dreifuss to an audience that included scientists, care-providers, politicians and drug users. The 10th International Conference on the Reduction of Drug-Related Harm (IHRC) focuses on the controversial subject of "Harm Reduction," a broadly defined term that stands for á reducing the damage done by legal and illegal drugs to users and to society at large.

MondayÆs presenters pointed out links between drug use and public health, especially for the transmission of HIV/AIDS.

Prisons, HIV/AIDS and the Community

The use of drugs in prison settings was a focus of Monday's Session, Drugs and Prisons. Among a range of approaches ranging from the exchange of clean needles to "Drug Free Units" in prisons, researchers agreed on one thing: There is more than one way to protect the public health.

"50% of the injecting drug users jailed in Europe continue to inject in prison," explained French researcher Michel Rotily. "People working in prisons have a moral responsibility to protect the health of the inmates" urged Heimo Stoever of the University of Oldenburg, Germany, pointing out that prisoners often return to the community after release, and can spread diseases contracted through unsafe drug use while in prison. Intravenous drug used has been positively linked to the transmission of HIV/AIDS.

Legalisation of cannabis

The legalisation of cannabis was also among MondayÆs major topics.Though cannabis appears to have beneficial medical uses for pain sufferers and those with multiple sclerosis, the issue remains controversial: in England, for example, a study involving more than 1,200 patients will soon begin to establish the beneficial medical effects of cannabis.

Controversial approaches gaining acceptance

Because it touches on issues that can involve illegal drugs, Harm Reduction is not always welcomed. "ItÆs hard to promote medicine that you smoke," lamented Dr. Lee Everson of the British House of LordÆs Medical Cannabis Review. Pat OÆHare, Chair of the first IHRC explains: "People often associate Harm Reduction with legalisation. It a completely separate issue. In fact, the most successful Harm Reduction strategies have been carried out without making changes to the laws. In some countries, only minor amendments to laws are required."

Despite its controversiality, the Harm Reduction approach is growing in popularity: "The networks are just the beginning," asserted Fabio Mesquita, describing the new countrywide networks of Harm Reduction programmes in Brasil. Based on the results of the 9th IHRC, Brasil has recently passed progressive legislation that legalises the distribution of clean needles for addicts in the region of S o Paulo.