Cork GP and councillor backs development of supervised injection facility in city

Facilities provide drug users with sterile injecting equipment, thus reducing risk posed by discarded needles and anti-social behaviour, Cork City Council was told

Supervised injection facilities reduce public health risks from drug paraphernalia. Picture: Getty

Cork should “prepare the ground” for a supervised injection facility (SIF) in the city by identifying potential locations and debating the issue, a Green Party councillor has said.

At a meeting of Cork City Council, Cllr Dan Boyle was backed by Fianna Fáil councillor and GP Dr John Sheehan, who said SIFs do not encourage drug use — they save lives.

SIFs provide a safe space where people can inject drugs under the supervision of trained health professionals.

Drug users are provided with sterile injecting equipment and counselling services as part of a wider strategy to reduce drug-related overdose deaths, reduce the risks of disease transmission through shared needles, and reduce public health risks from drug paraphernalia.

Funding was approved in 2017 for Ireland’s first SIF in Dublin but it has since run into planning difficulties.

Mr Boyle said the delivery of a SIF in Cork should not be dependent on the development of a facility in Dublin.

He asked the council to identify a suitable location for a SIF in the city .

“I think it’s a classic example, sadly, of what we see in many policy areas, of a failure to differentiate between public good and what is deemed to be politically popular,” he said.

"Cork should be proactive on this issue. We can have a public debate, we can even go so far as identify possible locations and start 'preparing the ground' for when an application can be made, and then make a submission to Government on how the facility might be finalised here."

Dr Sheehan said: “Around 20% of intravenous drug users tend to inject on streets and alleyways — they tend to be quite chaotic in their drug use. SIFs bring that into a safe and secure environment, they reduce the risk posed by discarded needles, and reduce anti-social behaviour. The sooner we have one for the betterment of vulnerable people in our society, the better.” 

Fianna Fáil councillor Colm Kelleher, who spoke publicly last year about his brother’s recovery from heroin addiction and about the need for a SIF in Cork, backed the motion.

What's your view on this issue?

You can tell us here

“We have been treating the problem and not the cause for a number of years now and that solution isn’t working,” he said.

“No one wants it next to their house, school or business but it’s my understanding that the initial one would be located on a medical campus, which I believe would be less disruptive to communities and could reduce the nimby problem,” he said.