Mobile needle exchange helps curb spread of disease in Birch Bay

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After a successful pilot program in Birch Bay and Maple Falls, the Whatcom County Health Department’s mobile needle exchange program is here to stay, and the county is working to expand its services.

An extension of the health department’s Bellingham-based Syringe Services Program, the mobile exchange has served at least 79 people in Birch Bay and Maple Falls since July 11 of this year. The county’s van visits each community once a week for two to three hours.

The program gets clean needles to injection drug users and safely disposes of dirty needles, helping prevent the spread of HIV, hepatitis C and other diseases. Exchanging needles is free. The opioid crisis is fueling a dramatic increase in infectious diseases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The health department collected and exchanged 13,260 needles in the program’s first three months. The Birch Bay site began operating on July 31 and has exchanged nearly 500 needles, said Melissa Morin, county health department communications specialist. The program reached even more than the 79 people who showed up in person at the exchange van.

“We know that some people who attend syringe services – at both the mobile and stationary sites – exchange needles for friends or family members who cannot make it to the exchange,” Morin said in an email. “It’s important for disease prevention that we get clean needles to these folks, too.”

The mobile program provides other health care services including wound care, vaccinations, some sexually transmitted disease testing and the opportunity to talk to a substance abuse counselor.

The health department uses a rental van for the program. Once it can get funding, the department plans to buy a van for about $50,000 and retrofit it for another $40,000 to allow health workers to provide more services. The health department is hoping to add a Ferndale stop soon.

The mobile needle exchange started because the health department heard that getting to its Bellingham clinic on North State Street was a barrier for some, Morin said. A quarter of the people served by the mobile program so far haven’t been to the Bellingham clinic.

Studies suggest that needle exchange programs can be a first step to seeking treatment. People who use syringe exchange programs are five times more likely to enter drug treatment and three times more likely to stop using drugs than those who don’t, according to the CDC.

“The whole idea with this program is that really it’s a way to meet people where they’re at and, through repeated interactions and building trust, to make sure they’re able to care for themselves and find their way to treatment and eventually a healthy life,” Morin said. “That’s the goal.”

The health department prefers not to publicize the location of the van to maintain privacy for patients, Morin said. People find out about it through service providers and word of mouth.

“Our traditional way of getting the word out isn’t necessarily the right way to get it out to folks who make use of this service,” Morin said. “We do have an existing program and we see folks regularly there. We hear from people there that really the way to spread the word is word of mouth.”

To inquire about the location of the van, call the health department at 360/778-6100.

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