A 2017 survey of 20,000 people between the ages of 18 and 64 conducted by the French Public Health Department (Santé publique France) and the French Observatory for Drug Dependence (OFDT: Observatoire français des drogues et des tendances addictives) found that about half said they had used cannabis. In a 2017 survey conducted by the OFDT (Observatoire français des drogues et des tendances addictives) of 20,000 people aged 18 to 64, about half said they had used marijuana. 3.6% of the respondents used it regularly. This is about 3.5 times more than in 1992 for the number of people with experience and about 1.9 times more than in 2000 for those who use it regularly.
When it comes to other drugs, the number of respondents who have “ever used” is about 3%, and the number of those who have used recently decreases to about 0.6%, but the number of those who have experienced cocaine is about five times higher than in 1992, and the number of those who have experienced ecstasy is about five times higher than in 2000.
I have seen some recent data showing that marijuana, alcohol, and tobacco (excluding e-cigarettes) use has decreased among young adults only in the wake of the new coronavirus and lockdown, but I wonder how long this trend will continue now that daily life has returned.
The area around Stalingrad station in the 10th arrondissement of Paris, where I lived for about eight years, was famous for drug dealing. Although the atmosphere has changed a lot recently, the area around Gare du Nord is still considered to be unsafe.
In one such area around North Station, on the grounds of a hospital, there is a facility known as a “salles de shoot” (injection room) for injecting drugs brought in by users. It is run by an organization called GAIA, and the director of GAIA is a doctor. The director of GAIA is a doctor, and there are also nurses and social workers on staff.
The injection room was built in 2016; it is a 10-year test period until 2026 to see what impact the injection room will have. In order to get a better understanding of the injection room, we have been giving tours to the injection room on a regular basis, which I attended.
The injection room does a simple registration when a user comes in. Many people use false names. The drugs themselves are not given, but the necessary equipment for using the drugs brought in is provided free of charge, and after using the injection room, they rest in the rest room before going outside.
The staff members talk to the patients while they are resting in the rest room, etc. The injection room also plays a role in providing advice for those who wish to escape dependence, alternative therapies that may relieve dependence such as auricular (ear acupuncture) therapy, AIDS and hepatitis tests, and social workers who serve as a bridge to related administrative agencies.
About 60% of the people who visit the injection room are homeless. Others come from seemingly “normal” people who have jobs and families.
The staff that was there that day, with the exception of the doctor, all seemed young. The frank atmosphere made me feel that this is an easy place for users to visit, and they seem to try to make it that way so that users feel comfortable coming.
One of the visitors asked, “Are there many people ‘rehabilitated’ here?” The answer was, “Not many by any means. Still, “creating a place to stay” is an important step, and some former users showed up several years after they stopped coming to the center and said that they are working with hope.
Some surrounding residents say that public safety has deteriorated and real estate prices have been affected, but according to the local police, “public safety has not worsened since the establishment of the injection chamber. On the contrary, it has not gotten better, but there may be changes in the longer term.
Other European countries, Australia, Canada, and other countries that have already set up injection rooms and performed herm reductions long ago are seeing results.
A follow-up comparison study of injection room users and non-users published by the National Institute of Health and Medicine (INSERM) in 2021 found that the risk of HIV and hepatitis C infection, overdose and emergency transport is also reduced, and that long-term operation is expected to improve public safety and reduce healthcare costs.
Even though I no longer live in the 10th Ward, I have never wished that the injection rooms would go away since I lived there. I have never been in danger. Of course, I am always careful about my safety when living in Paris, and this is just my personal experience, so I am not saying that the 10th arrondissement is safe for everyone, but I think this is the same no matter where you live in Paris.
There are also many dependency support centers in Paris, but they seem to be for people who are conscious of wanting to “get well” to varying degrees. But for those who don’t, I think they need a place where they can feel safe. There is only one injection room in Paris and one in Strasbourg. I think that is too few.
In February of this year, a French comedian/actor had a serious accident in a car he was driving after ingesting drugs. Drugs again drew attention to the problem, but speaking of dependence, I also saw data from the OFDT showing that dependence on alcohol and cigarettes is more serious than drugs in terms of numbers. According to this data, the number of deaths suspected to be causally related to alcohol and tobacco is not comparable to that of drugs.
With increasing social and economic insecurity, more and more people may be forced to depend on something in the future. Dependent people are not someone else’s problem, a world that is none of my business, and I want the government to do something about it. This visit is about asking, “What about me?” What can I do? This visit was a good opportunity for me to deepen my own questions, “What about me?
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