Harm reduction is a set of practices that aim to reduce the impacts and harms of substance use. Utilizing these practices helps to make substance use safer and less harmful to the person using and the community around them. Harm reduction practices do not condone or promote drug use, but rather acknowledge that drug use is happening and aims to keep people alive until they are ready to engage in treatment. Harm Reduction is “meeting the person where they are at” without stigma or shame. Below are ways to access Narcan and Fentanyl test strips, as well as syringe programs and numbers to contact if using alone so that the person on the other end of the phone can monitor you.
Harm reduction
- Aims to keep people alive and as healthy as possible
- Reduces the risk of infections and blood born diseases
- Connects people with social and health services and/or treatment
- Reduces the need to access emergency services and saves healthcare costs
- Encourages self-respect and offers hope.
Harm reduction includes:
- Needle exchanges
- Take-home Naloxone programs (THN)
- Drug testing and bad batch alerts
- Drug safety information and training
- Supervised consumption (SCS) and overdose prevention services (OPS)
NARCAN/Naloxone
Narcan/Naloxone is now available to purchase over the counter at locations such as drug stores, grocery stores, gas stations and online. Cost of over the counter Narcan/Naloxone is approximately $45 per box which contains two doses. If individuals have a prescription and insurance the cost would be less. Individuals can also request Naloxone for free from Essex County Outreach, which maintains a supply for community use.
Narcan spray was designed to rapidly reverse the effects of a life-threatening opioid emergency. It is used to revive someone during an overdose from many prescription pain medications or street drugs such as heroin or fentanyl and is in now available as an over-the counter treatment. Narcan/Naloxone works by blocking the effects of opiates on the brain and by restoring breathing. Naloxone will only work if a person has opiates in their system. Naloxone will not harm someone who does not have opioids in their system. There is no maximum recommended dose for Narcan and you can’t hurt someone by giving them more doses than they actually need.
For more information about Narcan/Naloxone please reach out to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. www.samhsa.gov/naloxone
LOOK OUT FOR ONE ANOTHER
If someone is not present, consider calling a friend or a loved one and remain on the line with them while you are using. In the event that you stop responding, the person on the other line can hang up and call emergency medical services to your location. The Massachusetts NEVER USE ALONE program 800-972-0590 is a 24hr confidential line to call, provide your location to the operator, and in the event you need medical assistance, the operator can provide 911 with your location should you stop responding. An individual has a 99% chance of surviving an overdose when someone is on hand to call emergency medical services.
See also www.massoverdosehelpline.org
Additionally, if the person who is with you is also using, make sure you take turns and have Narcan on hand so that you are able to help each other if the other person overdoses. With fentanyl, overdoses occur so quickly that if two people are together and use at the same time, they can overdose at the same time. This can be avoided if designate a “spotter” and delay time between each of you using (at least ten minutes).
Additionally, you can download the Brave App for Apple and Android phones. Identities are anonymous and you do not need to share any private information. An emergency plan is established and if you stop responding after a 20 second count down alert help will be sent in accordance to your plan.
HARM REDUCTION RESOURCES:
Harm Reduction Services:
Syringe Exchange, Narcan, HIV/HCV/STI testing, treatment referrals and more.
Healthy Streets Outreach Program – 100 Willow Street Lynn, MA:
339-440-5633
ONESTOP – 9 Center Street Gloucester, MA: 978-381-3170
www.harmreductioncoalition.org
SYRINGE EXCHANGE
Syringe Access Programs are community based programs that help provide individuals with access to sterile needles. These needles are provided to individuals at no cost. The syringe access programs also offer proper disposal of used syringes to help minimize the spread of blood borne diseases. Often times syringe access programs also offer Naloxone, Naloxone training, overdose prevention education, information on harm reduction practices, and referrals to treatment and counseling for STDs and other viruses.
Syringe Access Programs in Essex County:
- Healthy Streets | Contact information: Mary Wheeler | (339) 440-5633
Website - North Shore Health Project, One Stop Harm Reduction Program
302 Washington Street, Gloucester, MA 01930 | (978) 865-3924
Website - Lynn Community Health Center
269 Union Street, Lynn, MA 01901 | (781) 656-4646
Website - Greater Lawrence Family Health Center
100 Water Street, Lawrence, MA 01841 | (978) 685-7663
Website
It is important to get tested regularly since bloodborne diseases can be spread through the sharing of needles and show no signs for the first 6 months.
The good news is that early detection and treatment can prevent the disease from weakening the immune system and progressing into AIDS. The earlier you start treatment for Hepatitis B & C the greater the chances it won’t lead to liver damage, liver cancer, liver failure or kidney disease.
Risk reduction materials aid in reducing the negative effects of substance use and other high-risk behaviors that may be associated with substance use. Some examples of risk reduction materials are: condoms, wound kits, one-shot kits and pipe holders.
These materials not only aim to reduce the spread of infections and viruses as a result of substance use but also aim to keep people safe while using substances.
If you are not ready to go into treatment, remember these practices, as they will help keep you and the community around you safer as well as lessening your chances of a fatal overdose. Also remember that there is no one pathway to treatment. Treatment and the path to sustained recovery looks different for everyone.
FENTANYL TEST STRIPS
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is roughly 50 times more potent than heroin. It is commonly found mixed in other substances due to its low cost to manufacture and it is a strong effecting cutting agent. The rise in overdose deaths can largely be attributed to the presence of fentanyl whether suspected or not. There is no way to known the exact composition of a substance being ingested. Essex County Outreach has access to Rapid Response single use drug test strips giving the option to test the substance in private settings. Substances in liquid, powder, or pill form can be mixed with a small amount of water prior to usage, soaked in this strip, and within minutes the result is given in the substance contains fentanyl. The premise behind this is for making educated decisions if a test strip produces positive findings for fentanyl and to engage in additional harm reduction strategies to help safeguard from overdose. Therefore, the use of FTS may be an important harm reduction practice to inform and increase engagement in overdose prevention behaviors, employed before an overdose occurs.
For more information on how to use, see the below link:
https://trystereo.org/fentanyl-test-strips-how-to
If you are interested in obtaining strips, please contact us via email for more information.