What is Harm Reduction?

En Español [CC]
This video is part of the NIDA series At the Intersection: Stories of Research, Compassion, and HIV Services for People who Use Drugs.
“Harm reduction” is defined as interventions aimed to help people avoid negative effects of drug use, but many understand harm reduction as a way to meet people where they are with kindness and respect. In this video, we hear from people who use drugs, people who are in recovery, and harm reduction professionals on what harm reduction is (and isn’t) in their own words.
Learn more about Syringe Services Programs like the IDEA Exchange: www.drugabuse.gov/drug-topics...
Dr. Hansel Tookes is a 2021 recipient of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)’s HIV/AIDS Research Avenir Award for a new project designed to leverage telehealth-enhanced services to engage people who inject drugs into HIV care. Learn more about his project and NIDA’s Avenir Awards: www.drugabuse.gov/about-nida/...
Interviews were filmed in September 2021 at the IDEA Exchange in Miami, Florida.
See other videos in this series: • At the Intersection: H... .
This video can also be viewed at www.drugabuse.gov/videos/what....

[@Noise_floorxx]

“Harm reduction is the first step to recovery.” YESSS!!!!

[@Jesus_is_LORD444]

False… I lived in a homeless camp as a hard core fentanyl and meth addict. I seen first hand the damage done by these harm reduction sites to young kids. It’s population control experiments nothing more, see it for as it is. Also unless you were a drug addict on the streets trying to get clean you have no earthly idea how evil this is. They don’t care about us, they definitely don’t offer treatment options for free to homeless drug addicts. I tried to get help and they offered me needles and narcan…. Go and look at these sites in person look and see the destruction. Look and see who it is who is ACTUALLY handing out the needles. So they say they used to be addicts, you can say anything. These are private organizations run by politicians for political interests. If you think they are helping anyone but them selves your insane. They are literally thinning out the homeless population with these tactics. So unless that’s what your REALLY about don’t support this foolishness. It’s like telling morbidly obese people that it’s okay to be 800 lbs and here’s a roadside stand that serves you chocolate cake and shakes ALL DAY LONG. It’s enabling, and if it’s really ex addicts in charge of this that’s even worse because that means they sold out morally and are totally okay with killing off the people that they are supposed to represent.

[@SavannahBosshardt]

Dr. Tookes, I enjoyed watching your video discussing harm reduction. I enjoyed listening to the statistic that those who use syringe service programs are five times as likely to seek treatment, and getting them life-saving medication also guides them to recovery. Harm reduction services make a difference and have a powerful impact on the outcome of someone's life.

[@jenniferhobbs9222]

It helps lives and it also a non judgment

[@emanuelyasheav1040]

what about the credits of the video?

[@lidianetoledo8482]

It´s a beautiful work

[@nal004]

It’s not it’s one of the many progressive ideas ruing American. This all came from Europe and its progressive and new age over their even. Zoom out at the expanse of history and you will see ONE way of handling junkies and it doesn’t involve holding their hands

[@MissCheeVeeUs]

Harm Reduction may work for people who have enough self disapline to actually try to get help and talk to people. But how much self discipline does someone whos addicted to drugs really have? At some point it becomes enabling. And quite frankly i would perffer my tax dollars go to other much needed programs.

[@user-iv4et6ps4h]

My recommendation to you is that you inform yourself a little more about this topic. As for my tax dollars, if I had the choice, it would also go toward harm reduction.

[@nal004]

@@user-iv4et6ps4hwell you’re an idiot that should t have the right to vote. In what world is it my responsibility to find your lethal addiction. I’ve actually put in the hard work of overcoming my addictions, and not developing new ones and I did it on my own without the federal government’s tit to suck on. Take control of your life the government is not your mother and neither am I.

[@andrecureton6862]

I don't believe in Harm Reduction. I work in the homeless community if you show love, understanding or compassion using the harm reduction approach, you put your life in danger. Two of my ex coworkers one shot dead the other nearly died ! In nearly 18 years where I work I've not seen harm reduction work not one time !

[@carlcounts1]

you got that right!

[@jasonbachelor604]

Well aren't you stupid then

[@cody-channeling]

That sucks for your anecdotal example, but harm reduction is a temporary solution to gain complete abstinence. Some people are in so much pain from not being able to process childhood trauma to the point of addiction-as we say in addiction communities, drugs are pain medicine.

[@ronswansonsdog2833]

What kind of lives are people living that you’ve saved? It’s a tragedy.

[@dersuddeutschesumpf5444]

The second you save a life, you save them the chances and opportunities to turn themselves around. If someone dies, they obviously die

[@kylepatterson9389]

According to current statistics, people involved in Syringe Service Programs like this are around 5 times more likely to enter treatment for addiction. I've seen it save a number of people in my city who now have been in recovery for years without using.

[@_dadcore4_]

Did you watch the video?

[@mr.ch4rli3_]

​they clearly did not

[@Jesus_is_LORD444]

As an ex addict I can say harm reduction is extremely ineffective. I was in a “harm reduction site” on the streets addicted to shooting meth at the time. I seen so many overdoses. Also NONE of these people were offering suboxone which is a terrible drug (I also used to be a fentanyl addict), they are making NO efforts for the actually recovery of the addicts. And this is coming from personal experience. It’s a population control experiment that’s extremely effective. Sorry if this hurts you liberal politicians feelings but it’s the truth. The people pushing this agenda are politicians, very rarely did I ever find harm reduction except once where the people running it were addicts. Which is just addicts enabling other addicts to try different routes of administering the drugs that they don’t even know how to use. The idea that someone who never used needles are not going to use needles if they’ve never used them is a bold face lie. Again from my experience on the streets I saw many inexperienced addicts who were literally teenagers digging needles into their veins and missing shots, leading to abscesses and many medical issues. As an ex addict it sickens me to see that people who arnt even addicts who’ve never done a hard drug in their life giving away free drug cooking kits to children who are just experimenting with drugs. Their are also no effort to stop the drugs from coming into these areas anymore, making life more dangerous for ALL of society. Y’all people who agree with this have probably never been on the streets as Ana addict and wanted to get clean. Is their a legitimate harm reduction site with the actual intention for caring for these people, maybe, I’ve never been to one though. These people are outright evil and as an ex addict the lack of care and enabling is sickening and anyone who agrees with “harm reduction” are taking advantage of a self oppressed people to either push the agenda of killing off the addicts on the street or just to have an opinion talk about something they have almost zero experience with. I can positively say that giving addicts easy free access to drug utensils of ALL kinds but limiting the amount of narcan you can take and calling it “harm reduction” is absolutely insane and an absolute tragedy.