MEDIA STATEMENT: Injecting centre has managed 1,130 overdoses - Fiona Patten - Leader of the Reason Party

Enquiry Form


[recaptcha]

Fiona Patten - Leader of the Reason Party

(03) 9386 4400

  • About
    • About fiona
    • Fiona’s achievements
    • The Reason Coalition
  • Parliament
    • Speeches
    • Questions to Government
    • Members Statements
    • Notices of motion
    • Adjournments
    • Committees
    • Reports
    • Bills
  • News
    • Media
    • Newsletter
    • Events
  • Issues
    • Policy
    • Achievements
  • Gallery
  • Get Involved
  • Contact
    • Contact US
    • Request a meeting
×

Thank you, your sign-up request was successful!

×

Please provide a valid email address.

×

Given email address is already subscribed, thank you!

×

MEDIA STATEMENT: Injecting centre has managed 1,130 overdoses

Thursday, 13 June 2019

Reason Leader and Member for Northern Metropolitan Region, Fiona Patten, welcomes data reported today on the Medically Supervised Injecting Centre in North Richmond, which confirms the centre is working, saving lives and getting people into much-needed treatment and recovery.

 

Ms Patten said that the data published today showed the centre was saving lives and referring users of the facility to drug treatment:

 

  • • The centre has managed more than 1,130 overdoses — an average of three a day — between opening mid-2018 to June 2019.
  • • In its first nine months, staff at the injecting centre carried out more than 3,300 health and social support interventions.
  • • More than 250 people have started opioid replacement treatment or have been referred to other forms or drug and alcohol treatment, while 40 have entered treatment for hepatitis.
  • • Ambulance data from February for callouts for North Richmond, revealed that callouts halved when the injecting centre was open.

 

Ms Patten said this data was proof that the centre was doing its job.

 

Yet, she also acknowledged that there needed to be continuous improvements made to the centre and the surrounding area to get this trial right.

 

Ms Patten is overseas this week for a work trip in the UK and Poland, which includes meeting with UK Ministers from the All Parliamentary Group for Drug Policy Reform, to share knowledge and Ms Patten’s learnings after securing the first Medically Supervised Injecting Room in Victoria, as well as initiating Australia’s largest public inquiry into drug law reform, and more recently securing Australia’s first inquiry into cannabis.

 

“What we know is ambulance callouts dropped in the first six months of the centre opening and it has saved people from overdosing on over 1,000 occasions while connecting drug users to other drug services, including Hepatitis C treatment and mental health counselling,” Ms Patten said.

 

“But we will keep working with drug users and continue to listen to the community on this issue.”

 

– Ends –

 

To organise an interview with Fiona Patten, please phone Kaitlin Bartlett directly.

 

Media Contact: Kaitlin Bartlett

Phone: 0432 294 500

Email: kaitlin.bartlett@parliament.vic.gov.au

Share this on:

What you can read next

Fiona Patten Calls for Medical Cannabis to be Grown in Australia
Nine News: Victorian parliament will investigate different approaches to cannabis – video
3AW: Fiona Patten questions a taxpayer “handout” to the Catholic Church to rebuild Notre Dame – audio

Newsletter

Sign up to join our mailing list

Media Release

Sign up to receive media releases

OFFICE OF FIONA PATTEN MLC

Parliament of Victoria
747 Sydney Road, Brunswick,
VIC 3056, Australia

Copyright © 2020 Fiona Patten MLC. All Rights Reserved.

Menu

  • About
  • News
  • Contact
  • Community

Connect

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram

Contact

Phone (03) 9386 4400
Fax (03) 9386 4411

Copyright © 2020 Fiona Patten MLC. All Rights Reserved.

Funded from the Parliamentary Budget.

  • About
    ▲
    • About fiona
    • Fiona’s achievements
    • The Reason Coalition
  • Parliament
    ▲
    • Speeches
    • Questions to Government
    • Members Statements
    • Notices of motion
    • Adjournments
    • Committees
    • Reports
    • Bills
  • News
    ▲
    • Media
    • Newsletter
    • Events
  • Issues
    ▲
    • Policy
    • Achievements
  • Gallery
  • Get Involved
  • Contact
    ▲
    • Contact US
    • Request a meeting