NCJ Number
214534
Journal
Drugs: Education, Prevention and Policy Volume: 13 Issue: 1 Dated: February 2006 Pages: 5-16
Date Published
February 2006
Length
12 pages
Annotation
This article explores Norway’s decision to establish a public drug-injection facility and discusses the generally negative response to drug-injection facilities in Denmark, Finland, and Sweden.
Abstract
The Nordic countries of Norway, Denmark, Finland, and Sweden differ significantly in their approaches to drug policy. Denmark has taken the most permissive approach and has been criticized by its neighboring countries that have adopted more hard-line strategies. Despite this general tendency, it was Norway and not Denmark that permitted the establishment of a public drug-injection facility, which opened in February 2005 on a trial basis. Moreover, the purpose of the facility, which is to reduce overdose and preserve the user’s dignity, is at odds with substitution treatment, which has been the dominant drug treatment service in Norway since 1998. On the other hand, Norway has a long history of employing strategies to reduce drug-related harm, such as the needle exchange program that has been operating in Norway since 1988. The author details the conditions and terms of Norway’s trial drug-injection facility and explores the pros and cons of such facilities. Norway’s drug-injection facilities include a separate room for injecting, a waiting room, and a room for medical and social service contact and advice. Details of the planned evaluation of the facility are offered, as are short discussions of drug policy in Denmark, Finland, and Sweden that detail failed attempts to establish drug-injection facilities. References