Drug-related risks among street youth in two neighborhoods in a Canadian setting

Werb, Dan; Fast, Danya; Qi, Jiezhi; Montaner, Julio S. G.; Wood, Evan

doi:10.1016/j.healthplace.2010.06.009

Cited by 16 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 42 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The Downtown South neighbourhood of Vancouver is within easy walking distance of the DTES and is also the site of a thriving, albeit more “closed,” drug market (Fast, Small, Wood, & Kerr, 2009). This mixed residential-business-entertainment district is a popular destination for young people who use drugs on the streets, including opioids, cocaine, crack cocaine, and crystal methamphetamine (Bungay et al, 2006; Werb et al, 2010). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Still “at risk”: An examination of how street-involved young people understand, experience, and engage with “harm reduction” in Vancouver’s inner city

Bozinoff

Small

Long

et al. 2017

International Journal of Drug Policy

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Vancouver is an international leader in implementing interventions to reduce harms related to drug use. However, street-involved young people who use drugs continue to be vulnerable to overdose death, hepatitis C (HCV) infection, and high rates of syringe sharing. To better understand this in the context of the intensive public health response, we examined how young people, who are involved in the ‘street drug scene’, understood, experienced and engaged with harm reduction. Methods Twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted in 2013 with 13 young people (ages 17–28) recruited from the At-Risk Youth Study, a prospective cohort of street-involved and drug-using young people. These interviews were embedded within a larger, eight-year program of ethnographic research and explored participants’ understandings of harm reduction, their use of specific services, and their ideas about improving their day-to-day lives. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and a thematic analysis was performed. Results Young peoples’ ideas about harm reduction were diverse and expansive. They articulated the limitations of existing programs, indicating that while they are positioned to reduce the risk of HIV and HCV transmission, they offer little meaningful support to improve young peoples’ broader life chances. Young people described strategies to mitigate risk and harm in their own lives, including transitioning to drugs deemed less harmful and attempting to gain access to drug treatment. Finally, young people indicated that spatial considerations (e.g., distance from Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside) strongly determined access to services. Conclusions In Vancouver, a large, well established harm reduction infrastructure seeks to reduce HIV and HCV transmission among street-involved young people. However, young peoples’ multiple understandings, experiences and engagements with harm reduction in this setting illustrate the limitations of the existing infrastructure in improving their broader life chances.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Still “at risk”: An examination of how street-involved young people understand, experience, and engage with “harm reduction” in Vancouver’s inner city

Bozinoff

Small

Long

et al. 2017

International Journal of Drug Policy

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Specifically, these findings emphasize need for expanding youth addiction treatment and addiction treatment opportunities integrated with low-threshold housing options for homeless youth faced with addiction (Hadland et al, 2009), as well as harm reduction services, such as needle and crack pipe distribution targeted to youth engaged in high intensity drug use (Kerr et al, 2010; Ti et al, 2011; Tyndall et al, 2003). Finally, high-intensity drug use and exposure to associated harm is less well characterized among youth than among older drug users and should continue to be studied given the results of the current study and recent literature identifying the specific drug use patterns and service needs of street-involved youth (Chami et al, 2013; Hadland et al, 2009; Werb et al, 2010). …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…While homelessness may be indicative of entrenchment in drug scenes (Werb et al, 2010), it has been suggested that homeless youth may increasingly turn to drug use in order to cope with circumstances of life on the street. For example, homeless youth have reported the use crystal methamphetamine to stay alert, keep warm and enhance social interactions (Bungay et al, 2006), manage the psychological burdens associated with street involvement or self-medicate when contending with untreated mental disorders (Baron, 1999; Greene et al, 1997; Kirst et al, 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Additionally, the DTES neighbourhood of Vancouver is often characterized as Canada’s largest open illicit drug scene (Chami et al, 2013; Wood, Kerr, Small, et al, 2004). Previous research has demonstrated that street-involved youth living in the DTES are more likely to have recently injected drugs and are more likely to initiate injection drug use (Chami et al, 2013; Werb et al, 2010). Importantly, residing in the DTES is also associated with a higher probability of several health and social harms among adult drug users, including HIV infection (Maas et al, 2007).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

High-Intensity Drug Use and Health Service Access Among Street-Involved Youth in a Canadian Setting

Phillips

Richardson

Wood

et al. 2015

Substance Use & Misuse

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background/ Objectives Addiction severity has been associated with numerous social- and health-related harms. This study sought to examine the prevalence and correlates of high intensity drug use among street-involved youth in a Canadian setting with a focus on high-risk drug use practices and health service access. Methods Data were derived from the At-Risk Youth Study (ARYS), a Vancouver-based prospective cohort of street-involved youth aged 14-26. We used generalized estimating equations (GEE) to examine variables associated with high intensity drug use, defined as daily use of crack cocaine, cocaine, heroin or crystal methamphetamine. Results From September 2005 to November 2012, of 1017 youth included in the analyses, 529 (52%) reported high intensity drug use as defined above at least once during the study period. In a multivariate analysis, older age (Adjusted Odds Ratio [AOR] = 1.47); residing in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver (AOR=1.46); homelessness (AOR=1.30); recent incarceration (AOR=1.25); inability to access addiction treatment (AOR=1.42); and crack pipe sharing and/or used syringe injecting (AOR=2.64), were all positively and independently associated with high intensity drug use (p<0.05). The most common barrier to accessing addiction treatment reported by these youth was long waiting lists. Conclusions High intensity drug use among street-involved youth was prevalent and associated with structural and geographical disadvantages in addition to high-risk drug administration practices. Youth reporting more frequent drug use also reported barriers to accessing addiction treatment, highlighting the need to expand addiction services tailored to youth at greatest risk of harm from illicit drug use and street-involvement.

show abstract

“…3 Youth who are street-involved are known to engage more frequently in risky practices such as substance use, drug dealing, survival sex work, and unprotected sex. 4–6 As a result, street-involved youth are at risk of long-term health consequences including transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). 7, 8 …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Eviction and loss of income assistance among street-involved youth in Canada

Živanović

Omura

Wood

et al. 2016

J Public Health Pol

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Loss of housing and income assistance among vulnerable youth has not been well described in the literature, yet it is a crucial issue for public health. This study examines the prevalence and correlates of loss of income assistance as well as eviction among street-involved youth. We collected data from a prospective cohort of street-involved youth aged 14–26. Among 770 participants, 64.3% reported having housing and 77.1% reported receiving income assistance at some point during the study period. Further, 28.6% and 20.0% of youth reported having been evicted and losing income assistance, respectively. In multivariable generalized estimating equations (GEE) analysis, heavy alcohol use, unprotected sex, being a victim of violence, and homelessness were all independently associated with eviction. Separately, homelessness, recent incarceration, and drug dealing were independently associated with loss of income assistance. Eviction and loss of income assistance are common experiences among street-involved youth with multiple vulnerabilities. Our findings highlight the importance of improving continued engagement with critical social services.

show abstract

Drug-related risks among street youth in two neighborhoods in a Canadian setting

Cited by 16 publications

References 42 publications

Still “at risk”: An examination of how street-involved young people understand, experience, and engage with “harm reduction” in Vancouver’s inner city

Still “at risk”: An examination of how street-involved young people understand, experience, and engage with “harm reduction” in Vancouver’s inner city

High-Intensity Drug Use and Health Service Access Among Street-Involved Youth in a Canadian Setting

Eviction and loss of income assistance among street-involved youth in Canada

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About