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| https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heroin |
Years ago I saw a television story about a storefront in San Francisco that catered to the heroin addicts in their neighborhood. It's a brilliant idea. On the street level are partially walled stalls to give addicts some privacy, while allowing a rotating healthcare worker to check-in with their patients by simply walking past every so often. If they felt someone was in trouble, there's a nurse on staff to give them a life-saving shot that prevents an overdose.
After their patients became comfortable with that level of transparency, they could tour the upper floors of the building with staffers to see their in-care services, like their rehab program and transitional housing. After I saw it, I thought to myself: why aren't we replicating this program in every major city across America? It just made so much sense to me that I knew it was the answer we've been seeking as a society.
And so, it was with great happiness and a shock of recognition that I saw on the local news this week that our fair city here in New York plans to introduce a similar street-front model catering to heroin addiction. Why not? We already have rehab, detox, and disability. Why not spare families and their addicted family members from dying by a bad shot misapplied? This way, we can save a lot of people living on both sides of addiction. It's the way out for you, friends. Take it!
