At PASAN, we serve people with lived and living experience of incarceration and drug use. Many of our clients have been diagnosed with hepatitis C during their intake at a correctional institution. M
People who are incarcerated (PWAI) are identified as a priority population for hepatitis C care, as they are 40 times more likely to be exposed to the virus than Canada’s general population.
For a few years now, our team at Clinique médicale l’Actuel has noticed an increase in patients using crystal meth. At the start of the pandemic, to address our patients’ distress and increased substance use, we secured private funding to set up a support program for our patients who use crystal meth and practise chemsex, also called PnP or party ‘n play. We also convinced the Quebec Ministry of Health and Social Services to carry out a pilot project with this population at the clinic.
Cassandra Smith is Black CAP’s harm reduction specialist. CATIE recently spoke with Cassandra about how her lived experiences as a community member and parent have informed her harm reduction work, and how harm reduction programs and services can meet the needs of racialized parents who use substances.
For many years, CATIE has promoted the importance of harm reduction as a strategy to prevent HIV and hepatitis C among people who use drugs. Through our work, we have developed strong partnerships with harm reduction service providers, educators and advocates. More recently, we have responded to the needs of our partners by expanding the scope of our harm reduction information and education work to cover harm reduction and the health and rights of people who use drugs more broadly.
A message from Laurie Edmiston, executive director of CATIE: Dear friends and colleagues, It is with mixed emotions that I share with you my plans to retire this summer. As much as I love working at CATIE, there are many things I wish to do in life – maybe even during weekdays! In the nearly 19 years I’ve worked at CATIE, I have seen tremendous advances in science and in the community response to HIV and hepatitis C. When I joined the organization, our sole mandate was the provision of HIV treatment information. I’ve been honoured to lead our growth...
