Abstract
BackgroundFew studies have investigated the service needs of persons who inject drugs (PWID) who live in less populated regions of Canada. With access to fewer treatment and harm reduction services than those in more urban environments, the needs of PWID in smaller centres may be distinct. As such, the present study examined the needs of PWID in Prince Edward Island (PEI), the smallest of Canada's provinces.MethodsEight PWID were interviewed about the services they have accessed, barriers they faced when attempting to access these services, and what services they need that they are not currently receiving.ResultsParticipants encountered considerable barriers when accessing harm reduction and treatment services due to the limited hours of services, lengthy wait times for treatment, and shortage of health care practitioners. They also reported experiencing considerable negativity from health care practitioners. Participants cited incidences of stigmatisation, and they perceived that health care practitioners received insufficient training related to drug use. Recommendations for the improvement of services are outlined.ConclusionsThe findings indicate that initiatives should be developed to improve PWID's access to harm reduction and treatment services in PEI. Additionally, health care practitioners should be offered sensitisation training and improved education on providing services to PWID. The findings highlight the importance of considering innovative alternatives for service provision in regions with limited resources.
Highlights
Few studies have investigated the service needs of persons who inject drugs (PWID) who live in less populated regions of Canada
The limited empirical attention paid to Canadian PWID who live in rural or remote areas is disconcerting for three reasons: (1) studies investigating prevalence rates of injection drug use in rural areas outside of Canada suggest that there may be an increasing need for services in smaller regions or remote areas [1,2,3,4], (2) less populated regions may encounter unique institutional challenges when providing harm reduction and other treatment services due to the costs associated with meeting the needs of a geographically dispersed population and with recruiting
The current study focuses on these contextual factors; whether existing drug-related services meet the needs of PWID in the province of Prince Edward Island (PEI) and whether specific social forces perpetuate the marginalisation of this group
Summary
Few studies have investigated the service needs of persons who inject drugs (PWID) who live in less populated regions of Canada. The present study examined the needs of PWID in Prince Edward Island (PEI), the smallest of Canada's provinces. The limited empirical attention paid to Canadian PWID who live in rural or remote areas is disconcerting for three reasons: (1) studies investigating prevalence rates of injection drug use in rural areas outside of Canada suggest that there may be an increasing need for services in smaller regions or remote areas [1,2,3,4], (2) less populated regions may encounter unique institutional challenges when providing harm reduction and other treatment services due to the costs associated with meeting the needs of a geographically dispersed population and with recruiting. John's, Newfoundland may not be representative of PWID in other small Canadian centres given the geographic isolation and economic distinctiveness of the location.a
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