ERIC Number: EJ1190290
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2015
Pages: 10
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0968-7637
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
''Drugs Don't Have Age Limits'': The Challenge of Setting Age Restrictions for Supervised Injection Facilities
Watson, Tara Marie; Strike, Carol; Gillian, Kolla; Penn, Rebecca; Bayoumi, Ahmed M.
Drugs: Education, Prevention & Policy, v22 n4 p370-379 2015
Aims: People under age 18 who inject drugs represent a population at risk of health and social harms. Age restrictions at harm reduction programmes often formally exclude this population, but the reason behind such restrictions is lacking in the literature. To help fill this gap, we examine the perspectives of people who use drugs and various other stakeholders regarding whether supervised injection facilities (SIFs) should have age restrictions. Methods: Interviews and focus groups were conducted with a total of 95 people who use drugs and 141 other stakeholders (including police, fire and emergency services personnel, other city employees and officials, healthcare providers, residents and business representatives) in two Canadian cities without SIFs. Findings: We highlight the following thematic areas: mixed opinions regarding specific age restrictions; safety as a priority; different experiences and understandings of youth, agency and drug use; and ideas regarding maturity, ''help'' and other approaches. We note throughout that a familiar vulnerability--agency dichotomy often surfaced in the discussions. Conclusions: This paper contributes new empirical insights regarding youth access to SIFs. We offer considerations that may inform discussions occurring in other jurisdictions debating SIF implementation and may help remove or clarify age-related policies for harm reduction programmes.
Descriptors: Drug Use, At Risk Persons, Age Differences, Stakeholders, Health Services, Police, Allied Health Personnel, Public Officials, Safety, Maturity (Individuals), Facilities, Public Policy, Foreign Countries, Supervision, Youth, Personal Autonomy
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Canada
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A