can i ask why my post was removed

because shooting them is illegal.

i don't agree with any needle exchange program our goverment can stop this just by approving epipen auto injectors for people who have diabetes and any other type of at home medicine that requires a needle this would stop the need for selling needles or using them outside of a hospital or clinic.this will also help slow down the prescription scams for drug users and save our tax dollars for a real medical needs.i think it is a real shame that now people are scared to walk thru a park bare feet or with a pair of sandles on because of the fear of being poked by a needle.

We already have a safe injection site...its on the riverbank, just under the train bridge...look for the yellow recycling bin.

Whether anyone likes it or not... drug users are going to abuse drugs with the needle exchange program or not. So why not prevent transmission of diseases?? This is harm prevention! We are never going to get them to totally quit. However, the people utilizing the needle exchange program get educated on ways to cut back or quit eventually. They dont just get FREE CLEAN NEEDLES. They get educated on ways to cut back and reduce harm. Drug users do not like being drug users, sometimes they can not help it. Drug users tend to be associated with Low Socioecomical backgrounds however, little did you know... it could be your neighbour, your teenager daughter/son, your friend... Think before you JUDGE and help reduce HARM

theres needle drop off bins all over PA. I find them just outside my fence, i'm not picking them up, i push them into the back alley and i assume the neighbors call the fire dept and they're gone by the time i get home from work. I'm not going to risk having MY kids get infected by some dirt bags dirty needles. its a shame when you aren't even sure if you can walk in your own yard bare feet!

I think we need to have more drop off boxes. All of the ones we do have are hidden and that's fine. It is ugly.
However, they need to be in places easily accessible. Under the bridge. By the park benches along the river. By the water treatment plant. Places where dogs, kids and people walk.
If you need to know, here are the current needle drop offs.
o Fire Hall, 76-15th Street East (front of building)
o Liquor Store, 99th-9th Street East (behind store)
o National Hotel, 906-1st Avenue West (behind store)
o Sylken Conf. Store, 1600-15th Street West (behind store)
o Pineland Apts., 235-10th Street East (behind building)

There should be more, in my opinion, not for the convenience of the drug users, but for the safety of our kids, ourselves and our pets

i called in to report a needle down town it took them 4 days to come get it . And it was in the open where kids are and dogs . it is just stupid that they treat criminals better then hard working good people that just want to live a happy life. This city needs help!!

theres also a needle bin outside of Pineview Terrace facing 13 street (in the open, NOT hidden) but these dirt bags just throw them where ever they please.

just a thought but would giving an incentive to return needles to a drop off site work? we do it with beer bottles and cans and we know these are being used all over yet we don't see bottles or cans lying around. I don't think it is right to pay drug addicts helping to support their addiction but if we gave maybe 10-15 cents for every needle returned to the fire departmentit would go a long way to cleaning up our needle problem.

If the Needle Exchange Program worked in this manner I think that it would be benefit everyone and we would see a huge improvement in the number of needles we find in our city.

If someone is given 5 clean needles at the Needle Exchange Program they should not be given any more needles until they bring the dirty needles back... I think it would cause the drug users to be more careful with their needles and we would not find them lying all around our city.

As a parent I am constantly scanning parks, grass, flower beds to see if I can spot a needle.. it hardly seems fair.

Education goes a long way folks! I'm sure there is someone that would be happy to answer questions, educate and inform the public about harm reduction approaches as pertaining to needle exchange programs.
Spring will be here eventually and along with all the other garbage in the streets that gets revealed when the snow melts, needles are revealed as well. I believe the point of the video was to educate people on how to properly handle needles that are found after the thaw.

j2 is right. There is education and information offered to the people that use the exchange program. I highly doubt it's a free-for-all like a few of the comments below suggest. It is a government supported program in place to protect people against blood borne pathogens. Having an exchange in major cities is very important as the people can then be referred to programs and services they need to help them find a different way of life...like methadone, addiction counseling, detox/treatment, safe shelters, food banks, etc.

Doglover offered some locations of needle drop boxes in the community, two of those locations are incorrect. (Sylkens and Pineland Apts). If you call the fire hall, they can give you an updated list of all the drop boxes in PA. I believe there are 8 or 9 around the city.

Befor the needle exchange we saw a few needles but not nearly as many as now. Obviously this program is not working and should be scrapped.
As for the "harm reduction" argument that is the biggest joke ever. How is enabling someone to do harm to themselves "harm reduction"? And with the added needles laying around it is increasing the chance of someone who is completely innocent, like a small child, getting hurt.
Preventing poverty, if that was possible, will not stop drug abuse. This is another "feel good" type of argument but cannot explain how in Canada, with our large welfare system and abundance of tax funded programs, we still have drug abuse. Go to any third world country and see real poverty and then compare that to what people try to pass off as poverty in Canada befor making claims about poverty. There is no real poverty in Canada but we have an abundance of drug abuse. Coincidently the most poverty stricken countries I have visited have the least amount of injection drug abuse while the most prosperous nations have the biggest problems.
If you want to reduce the needle problem the best method is to reduce the number of addicts but since the most effective ways to do this are not politically correct then we will just have to live with the problem. But we can reduce it by eliminating the needle exchange and other ineffective programs.

joe blow has a good suggestion.....i would like to see them pay 5 or 10 cents for dirty needles....i think that would help alot.....you sure dont see many bottles or cans lying around.......

Assume that 500,000 needles are provided by the needle exchange program, with a 98% return rate. That leaves 10,000 needles unaccounted for, and most of these probably end up on the ground. For a city the size of Prince Albert, this seems to be a little "over the top."

I appreciate the good intentions, but I am not convinced that needle exchange programs provide a net benefit to the community.

Alexander

(SIGH)...This argument comes up ALL the time. And its tiresome.

What is TJ alluding to when he states that " to reduce the needle problem the best method is to reduce the number of addicts but since the most effective ways to do this are not politically correct then we will just have to live with the problem". I shudder to think of what you mean.

Live with it we must because we certainly CANNOT employ any UNpolitically correct means to rid ourselves of human beings. We must find ways to HELP.

If we want fewer needles on the street then CLEAN THEM UP. I'm not scared to do it, if done correctly there is absolutely NO harm that can come from this. Except for maybe tetanus...

Watch the video posted here to learn.

If you are concerned about your childrens safety - educate them NOT to play with needles.

If you are concerned about public playgrounds, sidewalks and open areas having dirty needles in/on them then again - EDUCATE your children and WALK with them. PLAY with them and inspect the areas where they play. I understand that it is certainly NOT ideal but its the best way to protect your child.

The bottom line is this - we ALL need to help out. If you don't think you should have to then don't complain about it.

Our city will never be a utopia but we can each do our own part to make it better.

The needle exchange is not going to go anywhere - if you think that it needs more drop boxes then advocate for that. I agree that there should be more. Maybe built onto the sides of the public garbage cans??? This might be a pipe dream.

duchess of speed I would consider forcing addicts into rehab but that is politically incorrect even though that is what is what is best for them. You read into my comment a little too much.
The needles are the problem we are debating here and the needle exchange is the main cause of that problem so the best politically correct solution is to scrap it. But since some people think that putting small children at risk for the sake of protecting addicts rights to toss needles on the ground is a sound policy it will stay. Time for the politicians to start doing the right thing and put an end to this stupidity.

duchess of speed are you out to lunch? This is somehow acceptable to you that people are throwing needles wherever they please and it should be up to the rest of us to clean up and educate our children and watch where we walk and you think we should coddle these people that have zero respect for themselves or our city. You must be one of these addicts because no one in their right mind would think that we should find it acceptable to put up with this type of reckless endangerment. I am so tired of people saying we need another program and it is up to somebody else to fix these problems. Until we start to make people responsible for their own actions we continue down that slippery slope that makes it someone elses fault and you can do anything and lay the blame on a lack of programs.

Forcing people into rehab NEVER works. Ever. They have to want to go.

Let's talk numbers.

It is estimated that our needle exchange program reduces the transmission of HIV by ~5-6% every year. In a province that has ~150 new infections per year - thats a significant number of lives. Even one prevented diagnosis of HIV saves the Ministry of Health hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. HUNDREDS of THOUSANDS of dollars a year with ONE diagnosis of HIV.

The reason we know that is because every city with an established NEP program has had a reduction of HIV diagnoses that is directly inverse to other cities who have seen the same number of infections rise by the same numbers.

It is also estimated that 1 in every 12 people are Hepatitis C positive. The Needle Exchange Program prevents the transmission of this virus Not Only by providing IVDU's with clean syringes, water and equipment to inject. They also provide education on how to inject in a cleaner way. AND addictions services is located above to provide service to those looking for help.

If 1 in every 12 people or 10% of the population in Saskatchewan are Hep C+ (I'm using very rough numbers and even easier math...) then ten percent of our population is about a hundred thousand people. If we reduce our numbers of transmission by 5-6% then they will be making a very positive dent in the number of new diagnoses.

I am not even going to guess at the amount of money a liver transplant would cost - but I believe that its >$30 000.00 of the taxpayers money. Treatment of Hepatitis C is also expensive and is about $1500/month for each person and treatment lasts anywhere from a few weeks to almost a year.

Treatment for liver cancer, cirrhosis and other compications related to Hepatitis C complications is varied but certainly not cheap.

If I speak in terms of $$'s I think that everyone will understand much more clearly the reasons behind the needle exchange.

It runs for a fraction of the cost. It runs on approximately the same amount that it costs to treat 5 hepatitis C infected person who is recieving treatment for one year plus the cost of staffing.

I know this doesn't solve the problem of the needles on the ground but I hope that I can at least shed some light on the reasons WHY we have the exchange. I hope this made sense!

Every year this issue comes up. Every year education is offered and every year the education is denied by those who sorely need it. This is getting very tiresome.

Lets say that we shut down the needle exchange program. Do you honestly think you will never see a needle on the street again? Really people, think about it. These syringes can be bought at pharmacies as well, so should we tell the pharmacies what they can and can't sell while we're at it? People are transient, don't you think the needles will come from other places as well? If you actually look at the needles on the ground, you will notice that there are three or four different types of needles indicating that they come from different places, be it pharmacies or other exchange programs in the province.

This is an issue to which there is very little choice for a solution. We are to the point now of beating a dead horse. Get the education that is offered, after you have been informed as to why and how, then feel free to come up with better solutions...not "forcing people into rehab" that is the silliest most uneducated comment I have heard thus far on this website.

Duchess is right. The numbers and tax payers dollars are what everyone is worried about, not the actual human being affected by addiction. The numbers PROVE that exchange programs are doing EXACTLY what the people wanted...less tax payers dollars going towards health care for the people who use such programs, less tax payers dollars paying for HIV and HCV treatment because less people are getting infected due to access to education and supplies.

I believe you can still find the Needle Exchange Inquiry (which was ordered by the provincial government in 2008) on the government website. This inquiry was done to ensure exchange programs were meeting the needs they were mandated to meet. The numbers were crunched and the government was pleasently surprised at the millions of dollars saved on health care by implementing needle exchange programs.
While you are researching the needle exchange inquiry for Saskatchewan, I also invite you to research "Insite" in Vancouver. You don't want to see needles on the street? Maybe you should lobby for a facility that will actually help decrease that number.

I've done my homework. I invite you to do yours.

If you stop the exchange program the number of needles WILL go down, where are these scum bags getting the money to buy drugs AND needles? I dont think its fair that I can't go to the park with my kids and enjoy playing with them, i'm always looking for needles. is THAT fair,. quit enabling these scum bags and get rid of the exchange program!
Maybe I'll take the 5 2L pepsi bottles of needles that i've picked up through out the winter back to the exchange program and ask them why they though that program was a good idea to begin with!!

So the unicorn and rainbow types think rehab won't work? Then lock them up a little longer til they learn to live responsibly in society. It's far better than putting innocent children at risk so that the poor addicts are protected from their own irresponsible behaviour. It’s time for some people to grow up and start dealing with the real problem instead of trying to force everyone else to live with it. Harm reduction and all the feel good crap is nothing but smoke. The real problem is needles in the streets and parks and if the poor hard done by addicts can’t look after that problem then get them off the streets til they learn how. My wife and I just came from a visit to a third world country and we never saw a single needle in the parks but we saw lots of people who take pride in their community even though they don't have two nickels to rub together. Our society could learn a lot from their example.

i don't pretend to know anything about the needle echange and am not going to be doing any reading on it to educate myself. From my uneducated view a needle exchange would imply that if I needed a fix I could obtain one by exchanging the needle from my last fix. If that were the case every needle I see on the street that has come from the needle exchange has come from an addict taking his last needle because he has discarded it saying he is never going to exchange for another needle. The fact is we are seeing an ever increasing number of needles discarded in public parks and playgrounds and even to the point of forcing the closure of some of our recreation facilities. The issue that was brought forth at the start of the thread was not to do with the validity of a needle exchange but more as to why the rest of society has to deal with the fallout in the form of discarded needles. If the needle exchange is sooo wonderful how hard is it to make it a true needle exchange and get some of these dangerous sharps off the street or will it take some child being stuck by a discarded needle and contracting one of the previously mentioned deseases before people will sit up and take note. Duchess how would you feel if it were your child or grandchild that was stuck by a needle and you felt it was more important to have a needle exchange than to focus on what has been a direct result of it. I don't deny any of your arguments but lets do what we can to rid the city of this dangerous problem

TOTALLY AGREE with Joe Blow!

How can we make sure that our City does not have needles discarded in public parks????

Perhaps the Needle Exchange Program is doing its part in harm reduction for the clients using the program...but is INCREASING the harm to the rest of SOCIETY when these needles are left around our City as Drug Users know that they do not need to bring them back and have a bountiful supply of needles at their Finger Tips down at the Needle Exchange Program.

Meanwhile, Parents need to worry about taking their children to a public park as they are worried that they will be stabbed by a needle. Or Parents spend their time combing carefully through the woodchips at the park in case a needle is imbedded underneath.

The question is .....HOW CAN WE MAKE THE CITY OF PA FREE OF NEEDLES? That is the important question to me a Prince Albert resident and parent of children.

Hi all,

This is really an important issue that is going to cause a lot of intense debates over possible solutions. It is great that everyone is sharing ideas and their own feedback about it, however, please remember to respect others and refrain from using harsh language, name calling, etc. Also, please note that comments with all caps are considered yelling/threatening in forums like ours and may be flagged for removal.

We're very glad that you're all using SeeClickFix to voice your concerns about this issue and want to ensure everyone can share without feeling disrespected. Let's keep this thread friendly and focused on finding a positive solution. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.

Emma
SCF Community Manager

You can not imagine the hell as a parent you go thru when your child steps on a dirty needle. I can, and I have. In certain areas, for example parking lots, the needles are virtually invisible. You may be on guard for needles when you're in a city park, but when walking into Safeway? That's where our son stumbled and stepped on one while wearing his flip-flops one summer.

Make the needle exchange a true needle exchange, not a needle give-away. Make the health district as responsible and accountable for the needles it gives away as you make gun owners for their firearms. Stop enabling these scum that put our children at risk. Put personal responsibility back into the equation.

The needle exchange might help the addicts by saving them a few dollars on their next fix and might help prevent the user from getting hep. or hiv but it is doing it at the expense of the public's safety. I can say for a fact that many street level dealers are going to the needle exchange. getting free needles, and then filling them with their junk and selling them loaded and ready. With this in mind, who is the needle exchange really helping...the dealer and the addict, thats who. It really doesnt help the public.

I know this comment will be "moderated". Why do we, society, continue to try to make these drugged out losers socially acceptable?...THEY ARE NOT. The needle exchange program is a joke, it causes more harm, both physically and psychologically to non users then it does "harm reduction". If we want to make PA a better place for ourselves and our children, we need to get rid of useless feelgood programs like the NEP, and direct that money to actual crime reduction...lock up the drugged out losers, until they quite, or until they are dead. yes, I said dead.

i would like to know why diabetics need to buy their own needles and heroin addicts dont? put syringes behind the counter and give all people who need them an id card saying they have diabetes etc etc, or a prescription from a doctor

IF I SHOWED UP AT YOUR HOUSE EVERYDAY WITH A BEER HOW LONG TIL YOU EXPECT ME TO COME? NOT LONG. WHY DONT WE KEEP GIVING FREE MONEY FREE NEEDLES FREE FOOD FREE CLOTHES FREE HOUSING FREE FREE FREE. EVERYONE EXPECTS IT, OF COURSE THEY WONT WORK. TAKE THESE FREE NEEDLES AND GIVE THEM TO THE PEOPLE WHO NEED IT TO SURVIVE, AND NOT TO SURVIVE FROM A DRUG FIX. THIS WORLD IS GOING DOWN AND IM ASHAMED TO BE APART OF IT.

bahahaha we are falling off topic here.....the funny part is listening to the radio and educating people on how to properly dispose of dirty needles from people who obviously dont have any respect for anyone, especially kids. It is one thing to be an addict, it is another thing to be discarding of your needles on the ground or in the playground of a school.

This whole thing is a tax dollar grabbing nightmare that has to end. Let these people do whatever they want, they will die off, and nature will work its course. Problem solved. I'm not trying to be heartless and ubsurd...I'm looking at a problem from a natural and realist point of view.

You cant help someone that doesnt want help...push them to rehab all you want, throw away as much money as you want...your not going to fix it....

you can lead a horse to water, but you cant make him drink....remember that

Do those who get free needles have to return their own used one to get a fresh one? That would make sense to me. It would reduce some - NOT ALL - needles left on the street. If a drug user isn't going to care about himself, do you think he/she will ever care about the rest of - and our children? It is sad, very sad indeed, to see needle disposal boxes in the washrooms of our restaurants and some stores, but it is necessary.
Drug selling is a billion dollar business. Where did I see a picture of an average sized bedroom in the house of a drug supplier? It was packed solid, floor to ceiling and wall to wall with bundles of hundred dollar bills. I don't think he can be convinced to work at any other form of employment, though I wonder where the heck they can spend a whole lot of cash - or even launder that kind of money - anywhere. Local business man, what would you think if a man came into your business wanting to pay for - say a very expensive car - with the full price in hundred dollar bills?
Drug use is here to stay. How do we make the city safe for ourselves? Free needles are not even the tiny beginning of what is needed to control the problem for our own safety. And by the way, do gooders and politically correct proponents have hamstrung the police so that they can barely do anything. Do these folk ever think ahead to the results of their heart felt demands for the 'rights' of others - and nuts to those who suffer for those rights?
As you pick up needles Mom and Dad, remember these poor souls have 'rights' and your children don't and there isn't a darn thing you can do about it.
Not Hopeful

http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/drugs/needleexchange.html

In Vancouver they even pay for a building for the addicts to go and shoot up in a clean environment.

On this subject though, the exchange programs typically take in MORE needles then they give out. So the needles you are finding are going to be there regardless. According to most information I could find, stepping on a used needle isn't a big threat at all. Most of us have tetanus shots already, and that is really the only big issue.

If it were up to me though, I'd take the men and woman in correctional and the pen who are on good behavior and allow them to do some community service. Give back to the community that they took from, instead of saying time = payment.

"the exchange programs typically take in MORE needles then they give out" Hey Travis, how about you explain this....is there magical needle tree's...no. This is the typical propganda bs that is used to justify the NEP.

NEP needs to end,

As for your idea about the low risk inmates contributing to our community...fantastic idea, it lets them give back to the community, and it could instill some pride in working, to bad the same brain trusts that came up with the NEP will claim that inmates working violates their human rights

I believe that in order for this program to work, they should have to return their needles in exchange for a new one. Then that way they can clean up their own mess instead of innocent kids and residents of p.a. I get tired of the endless amount of needles I find in my neighbourhood!

I am tired of finding needles in my backyard or under the trees where my child and friend's play: it is not safe to send them outside unless yard is cleaned of needles and even used condoms first. What I would like to see if the police to put a camera up in area's to catch the addicts who are leaving these harmful items around...

the Needle Exchange is a Joke
what is does is allow pushers to preload their speedballs.
then they send little kids to pick up the needles, take them to the pharmacies for exchange, by the pailful.
the little kids take the new needles to the pushers and get a stipend. and the cycle continues.

Yet, Diabetics have to pay for their own... I suggested to one to take them to a different Pharmacy and just tell them you want to "Exchange" them.... no reason need be given

Oh... and I hope people realize that P.A.H.D. gives out more needles than anywhere else in the world...

almost 11 needles per person per year