The National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) today welcomed the decision by the NSW Government to recognise the Kings Cross Medically Supervised Injecting Centre (MSIC) as a permanent health care facility.
“The Medically Supervised Injecting Centre has undergone robust evaluation over the course of its operation,” said NDARC Acting Director Associate Professor Alison Ritter.
“An evaluation by NDARC has been consistent with other local and international studies which support the role of the Centre within a broad range of responses to drug related problems,” said A/Prof. Ritter.
“The evidence indicates that supervised injecting facilities are associated with reductions in overdoses, needle and syringe sharing, public injecting and numbers of publicly discarded syringes and that they have not led to increases in drug-related crime or rates of relapse among former drug users.
“Further we found that there was significant support and acceptance of the facility by the local community once the Centre was established.
“Our society’s response to problems associated with drug use requires a complex and diverse range of options.
“It is critical that these options be based on the best available evidence.”