By GLYNIS HART
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CLAREMONT — Following a presentation by Valley Regional Medical Center President Peter Wright, and with the support of Claremont Police Chief Mark Chase, the Claremont School Board passed a motion giving the hospital permission to host a needle exchange site near the school.
The vote was 5-2 with Rebecca Zullo and Steve Horsky voting No. The needle exchange site has been controversial because the hospital is less than 1,000 feet from Disnard Elementary School. New Hampshire law prohibits such a placement unless the program receives permission from the school district.
Horsky began by questioning the terminology, referring to an earlier program, Project 439, that operated for six months last year. “The number of clean needles distributed was 1,760, and you collected 329, so you collected 20 percent of what you gave out. If only 20 percent are getting taken in, where are the rest going? And if it’s not an exchange, should it be called something else?”
Laura Byrne, executive director of the HIV/HCV Resource Center, which runs a needle exchange program in White River Junction, Vermont, responded. Byrne said while some places do require a one-to-one exchange, many places don’t call them needle exchange programs. “Also, if you don’t collect one-for-one, there’s a lot that get dispersed to people who won’t come in. We really see our services as a way to get people in [so they can start talking to care providers].
“That’s actually not a lot of needles,” she continued. “It sounds like a lot, but it’s not a lot. Some people inject five times a day.” Byrne invited school board members to come to the resource center and witness what happens on a daily basis. “You would see the interaction and the way we are able to help people.”
Visitors to the center in White River Junction are helped to get medical care and encouraged to enter treatment. Over the long term, said Byrne, their relationship with the program staff can be a way into getting treatment for their addiction. Many addicts also have additional health problems, such as abscesses, that would go untreated if they didn’t come in.
“It’s about building relationships,” said Wright. “You’re talking about a population that doesn’t trust anybody.”
Wright said repeatedly he’s committed to keeping the school grounds safe, and pledged to work with the school to make sure the program at the hospital doesn’t endanger students. “If you knew what happens in our emergency room every day, this would be the least of your worries. I honestly believe the students are in more danger without this.”
Police Chief Mark Chase expressed his support for the program. “There are addicts all over the community, the state, the country. When I started, just possessing a needle was a felony. Now I carry sharps containers in every cruiser; I have to. We’re up at the hospital all the time; a lot of the people that will use this program are already there.”
Board member Jason Benware asked about the hours of the program, and whether it could be confined to after-school hours. Wright responded that the hours depend on the medical students who would be staffing it, but so far the schedule is 3:30 to 5:30 p.m., two days per week.
In response to questions about the location of the program, Wright said the law requires it be at a healthcare facility. Horsky asked why they didn’t put it in Newport.
“If we put it in Newport, it won’t help Claremont,” said Wright. “We’ve spent months trying to find a place for this to work. We need to have it in the community. We’re the only ones trained to do it safely … It’s more than just a repository, it’s a relationship. And this is not a crisis anymore. It’s an epidemic.”
“What we’re trying to do is provide the venue for people who can’t travel,” he said. “Transportation issues for people seeking healthcare are enormous.”
Byrne offered the fact that they are also negotiating with Newport Health Center, but that facility has limited room and there are other services in line ahead of them.
Board chair Frank Sprague urged people to avoid Not In My Backyard syndrome: “There’s no question it serves the greater good, but ‘not in my backyard.’ I think we need to be wary of NIMBY.”
Benware asked about after-school programs at Disnard; there is one from Monday through Friday that runs until 5:30 or 6 p.m., depending on when parents can pick up their kids.
Wright and Chase said they would work together to make sure there is police presence by the school while the program is open.
A motion was made by board member Michele Pierce to accept the hospital’s request to open a needle exchange program on hospital grounds. Board member Carolyn Towle asked that regular reporting be done, to which Wright and Byrne said that was standard procedure. The motion passed.
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