Already a year since the lower risk consumption room (SCMR), also qualified as a “shoot room”, opened its doors in Strasbourg. The experimentation in France of these places of “assisted injection” over a period of six years, under the law adopted in December 2015, had aroused many turmoil in public opinion and the political class. The main arguments of the opponents pointed to the risk of trivialization of the drug but also that of “neighborhood” troubles for residents. The results of the Strasbourg SCMR, opened November 7, 2016, depict another reality. The steering committee, on Friday, December 1, qualified the results “completely exemplary” and considers that this support space for drug users is a “success in terms of public tranquility”.
391 people are registered in this room and between 50 and 80 passages are counted daily, according to figures given by the Ithaca association and taken up by AFP.
The users often in great precariousness and not supported by medical structures “feel good and […] can preserve their lives “, explains Danièle Bader, director of Ithaca quoted by AFP.
No fatal overdose took place within this space, and “only 4 overdoses, without after-effects” required the intervention of the emergency services, according to the association.
183 infectious disease screenings
Among the arguments often made by defenders of the SCMR project was that of reducing risky behavior and limiting the dangers associated with injecting hard drugs through support from doctorsand thanks to the hygienic conditions provided. Verdict in Strasbourg? 183 screenings for infectious diseases (HIV, hepatitis) and 13 cases of hepatitis C were carried out in the SCMR. Hundreds of users have been seen in consultation by doctors and nurses from Ithaca (listening, care, psychiatric interviews …) according to the association.
Faced with this assessment, some will wonder: will this encourage other cities to experiment with these assisted injection rooms? In Paris, the first SCMR was inauguratedin the 10th arrondissement of Paris on October 11, 2016, but the divisions around the presence of this room are far from over.
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