Supervised injection in Toronto will improve the health of people who inject drugs
April 5, 2016 • By Drs. Ahmed Bayoumi and Carol Strike
Over the past year, advocates or elected officials in Montreal, Ottawa, Victoria, Baltimore, New York City, Ithaca (NY), Seattle, San Francisco, Glasgow and four cities in Ireland have called for the implementation of supervised injection services. More recently, Toronto's Medical Officer of Health Dr. David McKeown recommended that the Board of Health start a community consultation process toward establishing supervised injection services within three existing facilities in the city. The Board voted unanimously in favour. As the lead investigators of the TOSCA study (the Toronto and Ottawa Supervised Consumption Assessment), we support Dr. McKeown's proposal and look forward to the opening of these services in Toronto.
Hepatitis CHepatitis C treatment
We're all mad here: It's time to demand affordable Hep C treatment!
March 22, 2016 • By Patricia Bacon
My daughter has a smartphone cover that says: "We're all mad here". It's from Alice in Wonderland. I like it; and when it comes to hepatitis C treatment and pricing, it's quite on point.
PrEPWomen
5 ways that PrEP highlights gender inequities in HIV
March 8, 2016 • By San Patten
One of the most memorable moments in my 20 years working in the HIV field happened in a standing-room-only meeting hall in Vienna at the International AIDS Conference in 2010. This was the moment that the clinical trial CAPRISA 004 announced proof-of-concept for prevention of HIV among women using a vaginal microbicide (1% tenofivir gel). The entire room broke out in a standing ovation and tears of joy. Finally! A prevention tool that could allow a woman to protect herself in sexual encounters, regardless of the desires and wishes of her sexual partner.
Health Canada's statement on the status of naloxone is a welcome drug policy paradigm shift
March 4, 2016 • By Dr. Lynne Leonard
The administration of naloxone, a chemical compound that effectively temporarily reverses the effects of an opioid overdose, is recommended by the World Health Organization to be used in the case of an opioid overdose. Naloxone is currently available in Canada only in an injectable form and by prescription only; it can only be administered to the person named on the prescription, not to a third party.