Harm Reduction

The term harm reduction refers to polices and programmes that aim to prevent or reduce the harms associated with injecting drug use.

We provide and/or advocate for comprehensive harm reduction programmes for people who inject drugs.

Injecting drug use is a major factor in epidemics in Asia, North America, Western Europe, parts of Latin America, the Middle East and Northern Africa. In some Eastern European countries, especially the countries of the former Soviet Union, injecting drug use is driving an epidemic among young people. A comprehensive range of harm reduction interventions is essential to effectively address the risks of HIV transmission among people who inject drugs.

We need to provide and/or advocate for comprehensive harm reduction programmes that:

  • provide appropriately targeted information preventing HIV transmission, including access to sterile injecting equipment
  • provide HIV information, education and communication programmes for people who inject drugs
  • provide access to treatment for drug dependence, including substitution treatment such as methadone
  • use community outreach strategies to enable people who inject drugs to access HIV prevention information, the means of prevention, drug treatment, VCT and treatment, care and support programmes, and
  • address the HIV prevention and treatment, care and support needs of prisoners.