IDU in the PSI BCC Catalogue

PSI HQ has sent out to each CR the PSI BCC Catalogue on CD-Rom.

This is just a quick piece of advice for IDU program managers to briefly look through the materials that PSI has produced on IDU around the world. Materials are from countries including Thailand, Vietnam, India, Central Asia, China, and others.

It can also be accessed online at http://misaccess.psi.org/bcc_catalog/web/search.html

Cheers
Rob

On Needle Programs

Needle exchange: learning from when it DOESN'T work

Six case studies show how the complex balance of needle exchange services can be disrupted, leaving hepatitis C and HIV spreading rapidly. Common themes are resource starvation, local hostility, counterproductive restrictions, and a non-interventionist ethic. Print publication 2003 [Drug and Alcohol Findings, UK]

Cheers
Rob

Switching IDUs from injecting to "chasing" for HIV prevention

One of the new frontiers of harm reduction is "RTIs", or Route Transition Interventions - projects to help drug users switch to less risky forms of drug use, or to reduce initiation of risky forms of drug use.

PSI is on the forfront of this work with our efforts in C. Asia to reduce IDU initiation among youth.

Below is a fascinating intervention to encourage IDUs to move to "smoking" (AKA "Chasing the Dragon) heroin, a much less risky form of opiate administration.

Our harm reduction programs should be considering if this kind of work is appropriate for our different environments.

Rob

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Distributing foil from needle and syringe programmes (NSPs) to promote transitions from heroin injecting to chasing: an evaluation
The report presents evaluation results from an intervention using specially produced foil packs to promote a transition from heroin injecting to inhalation (chasing) with injecting drug users (IDUs) attending four needle and syringe programmes (NSPs) in south west England [Harm Reduction Journal]

http://www.harmreductionjournal.com/content/5/1/24

WHO, TB, PSI, GF Round 9

For those of you working on IDU issues both on the HIV and TB sides, the WHO has produced a new manual on this important topic. see weblink below.

FYI, some people are beginning to speak of Global Fund Round 9 as a "TB Round" - i.e. a round where countries should think strategically about how to scale up TB work. If your country has a serious TB problem (see your DALY Map to check, if you're not sure), now would be the time to have a meeting with the national TB program, to see if there's a role for PSI.

Cheers
Rob


POLICY GUIDELINES FOR COLLABORATIVE TB AND HIV SERVICES FOR INJECTING AND
OTHER DRUG USERS AN INTEGRATED APPROACH

Web: http://www.who.int/tb/publications/2008/en/index.html