Take Charge Take Care
Recently, the city of New York’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene printed about 70,000 copies of the Take Charge Take Care guide which offers information on how to prepare drugs carefully and how to care for veins in order to avoid infection.
Many bloggers and politicians are up in arms over this booklet, saying it’s ‘a step-by-step instruction on how to inject poison’.
However, countless studies have proven again and again that harm reduction not only saves lives but it also prevents the spread of HIV and Hepatitis C. Simply ignoring those who inject drugs does not mean the issue goes away. If anything, remaining in the dark about safety leads to higher infection rates. That is a fact.
Assistant Commissioner Daliah Heller says instructions on how to perform injections were included in the information because there’s “a less harmful way to inject.”
The illustrated guidebook offers information on HIV testing and the dangers of sharing needles.
It’s amazing how much outrage can be found over 70,000 copies of a booklet distributed in New York City in which the goal is to save lives.