Needle exchanges provide people with drug addictions a place to turn in used needles and get new ones while working to prevent outbreaks of hepatitis and HIV. In 2017, Las Vegas installed three vending machines to dispense free, unused needles.
Here & Now鈥榮 Robin Young learns more from Chelsi Cheatom, program manager for Trac-B Exchange, a medical clinic in Clark County, Nevada.
鈥淲e realized that it would be a lot easier and a lot more time efficient for us if we could package everything up for our clients before they even arrived,鈥� Cheatom says.
Interview Highlights
On the vending machine鈥檚 benefits
鈥淲ell the benefit is actually in this case time. It does take a lot of time to have someone sit there with a client and do one-on-one syringe exchange with them, and we realize that it would be a lot easier and a lot more time efficient for us if we could package everything up for our clients before they even arrived, and then make it easy for them to just go in and swipe a card or punch in some numbers at a machine and get the supplies that they need.鈥�
On how the process works
鈥淲e have our clients come in and they fill out a short form and register for the program. They鈥檙e also limited to only receiving two syringe boxes per week. Each box contains 10 syringes. 鈥� There鈥檚 a sharps container that鈥檚 sitting directly next to the machine where people can put their used syringes, and we will take them and dispose of them properly.鈥�
On other outreach the organization does
鈥淎 syringe exchange program should include information about HIV and hepatitis education, information about where people can receive testing, treatment and overdose prevention, and we are able to put flyers and pamphlets in the boxes that cover all of those things. And when they鈥檙e ready to get into recovery, they know that anywhere where a machine is housed, it鈥檚 a safe place for them to go.鈥�
On concerns that people who use drugs won鈥檛 turn in used needles
鈥淭hat鈥檚 a common thing that we鈥檝e heard from other places that we鈥檙e interested in getting vending machines. And from what we鈥檝e noticed so far, people are returning those syringes to us. We鈥檝e signed up around 400 people to use these machines in the last year, and we鈥檝e distributed over 37,000 syringes this way.鈥�
On downsides to the vending machines
鈥淭he only downside that we鈥檝e had to address is the fact that we are finding that we have to stock the machine more often than we thought we would. As the machines became more popular in the community and people started to use the machines more, we鈥檝e had to stock the machines sometimes two to three times a week. Funding for this project is very limited. We were able to purchase the machines through funds received from Nevada AIDS Research and Education Society, and also some private and personal funds. But there鈥檚 no federal funding for this program at all.鈥�
On justifying the cost of needle exchanges across the country
鈥淚t鈥檚 a possibility that it could become overwhelming, but the cost to treat someone for hepatitis C sometimes is over $100,000 per patient. So if we can reduce the cost on the back end by providing someone with a syringe that may cost us about 6 cents, it鈥檚 worth it in the long run.鈥�
Copyright 2021 海角社区. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
