HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — As a result of the state’s opioid crisis, syringes are being found in public places, leaving people open to infection, HIV or viruses if they happen to get into contact with a needle.
The Kanawha-Charleston, Putnam County and Cabell-Huntington health departments are fighting this by providing people who use drugs with harm reduction programs that allow them to exchange used syringes with sterile needles, resulting in less be thrown into public trash cans and spaces.
According to Dr. Michael Kilkenny, the physician director of Cabell-Huntington Health Department, programs like these are being unfairly labeled as a reason people see syringes in public.
“The syringe litter in the community has been a problem since before I took my job here in 2015,” he said.
According to a release from the three health departments, the programs have collected more than 380,000 needles since January.
“The access to clean syringes for those people is the primary preventive measure we can take at this time to prevent those diseases,” Kilkenny said. “We have a program where by any citizen who finds a syringe can call us and we will come and get it.”
The health departments also work with local police units by providing proper disposal containers as well as training on dealing with syringe disposal and overdoses.
Kilkenny said the health departments know additional efforts need to be made to address the opioid crisis in terms of syringe use, and he is exploring options in Cabell County.
“We’re requesting permission to place a container outside our health department that will let people bring syringes at times other than syringe exchange,” he said. “It’s not always convenient to come during business hours to get rid of syringes, and we’re trying to make that more convenient.”
The Cabell-Huntington Health Department is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Mondays, and between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday.