"For injecting drug users who cannot gain access to treatment or are not ready to consider it, multi-component HIV prevention programs that include sterile needle and syringe access reduce drug-related HIV risk behavior, including self-reported sharing of needles and syringes, unsafe injecting and disposal practices, and frequency of injection. Sterile needle and syringe access may include needle and syringe exchange (NSE) or the legal, accessible, and economical sale of needles and syringes through pharmacies, voucher schemes, and physician prescription programs. Other components of multi-component HIV prevention programs may include outreach, education in risk reduction, HIV voluntary counseling and testing, condom distribution, distribution of bleach and education on needle disinfection, and referrals to substance abuse treatment and other health and social services."
Committee on the Prevention of HIV Infection among Injecting Drug Users in High-Risk Countries, Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences, "Preventing HIV Infection among Injecting Drug Users in High Risk Countries: An Assessment of the Evidence" (Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 2006), p. 175.
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