BLOG: “Can I have ten 27s and some alcohol swabs,” he says confidently as he puts his used needles into the medical waste bin and picks small bottles of bleach from the bin...
Sam Adams
He bolts through the door; if I passed him on the sidewalk I would never know that my first needle exchange customer was an intravenous drug user.
“Can I have ten 27s and some alcohol swabs,” he says confidently as he puts his used needles into the medical waste bin and picks small bottles of bleach from the bin.
His looks about 30ish, he’s dressed better than me, carries a black work satchel on a strap around his shoulder, and he looks “normal.”
I’m nervous but try not let my hand shake.
Squid, a caseworker standing next to me, asks him how he’s doing. 
“Fine,” is all he will say.
I put the sterile hypodermic needles and alcohol swabs into a nondescript paper bag and hand it to him.
He avoids eye contact but says, “Thanks.”
I say, “You bet, take care.”
Squid says he had the vibe of a heroin addict.
I am working as a receptionist of sort, although what these staffers do is much more than that. For hours, clients come through the door in a steady stream; Portlanders of all walks of life but all rutted on the path of intravenous drug use.
In an average year, the Outside/In needle exchange program will give away and collect about 500,000 needles. The City of Portland gives $10,000 to the needle exchange program.
A woman comes in swaying side top side. Short, brown wavy hair, glasses, maybe 40-years-old; she has open sores over her shoulders and face.
The front page Oregonian newspaper photographs do not even begin to depict the sores of a meth user. It like chunks of skin has been eaten away, with the surrounding edges of puffy and swollen.
She looks at me, “Hmmm, you’re new?” I notice a sore across the bridge of her nose. One of her glass nose pads rests in the crater of an open sore. I answer, “Yes, I’m in training,” but, her attention is already elsewhere in the room.
This program is about harm reduction. Kelley the program manager would like to see more of these people get into treatment.
But low or no income drug treatment programs have up to 300 person waiting list in the Portland area.
For now, the exchange programs just aims to keep them from sharing needles and the diseases that go with them.
Early this week, the City Council approved a joint resolution with Multnomah County to jointly budget the nearly $400 million spent on local public safety, find savings at use that money to expand efforts to end drug abuse. As the City Hall rookie, I'm conscious not to push to much change too quickly. My day at Outside In eliminated any lingering doubts -- I'm going to stay very pushy on this issue.
The needle exchange program is but one program of Outside In.
Outside In is a social service agency of 12 FTE staffers dedicated to serving low-income adults and homeless youth. Current programs include a community health clinic that serves 15,000 doctor visit a year, a homeless youth program designed to help homeless youth obtain independent living, and risk education.
There are an estimated 2,000 homeless youth in Portland, and many myths associated with their
homelessness. Youth end up on the street for multiple reasons, but most run away from violent and abusive homes, or are a sexual minorities or questioning.
Started by Executive Director Kathy Oliver in 1968, Outside In has great success at helping Portland’s homeless youth transition off the streets and into stable lives. Over 80% of youth who go through Outside In’s transitional housing program never return to the streets.
I thought all the programs were smart and open and positive.
You (and your pooch) are invited to the grand opening celebration...
Outside In is pleased to announce the opening of The Virginia Woof Dog Daycare. Virginia Woof is the first dog daycare in the country to be used as a job training program. It was created because many of Outside In's homeless clients have a passion for animals coupled with a dire need for employment. The Virginia Woof Center provides a bridge between homelessness and employment.
Please join them for door prizes, human & canine hors d'oeuvres, tours of the center and a best dog-trick contest. Celebrity dog Milo Van Sant (owner, Gus) will kick off our program at 7:00pm.
Friday, September 30th
1520 W Burnside
Portland, OR 97209
6:30pm - 8:30pm
Thanks to the Outside In team and clients for making me feel at home for the day. A grateful city thanks you, even if they don't know all that you do. Onward! Sam
Posted by Sam Adams on September 19, 2005
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Filed Under 100 Hours, Downtown Portland, Front Page, Jobs & Economy, Livability & Environment, Public Safety
Comments by site visitors
Sam, you wrote:
"I thought all the programs were smart and open and positive."
This is true. Unfortunately, though, the way the employees of Outside In are treated is NOT this way. They are expected to work overtime without pay, and this comes straight from the top.
Plus, there is a strong "class barrier" between employees and clients, in a lot of ways. Certain workers never even get to talk to the clients, nor really know much at all about what Outside In does, nor what the clients are like, nor what their needs are like. The employees are like "fenced off" from the clients -- a real classist situation.
Sam, since you are taking Outside In seriously, I suggest you look carefully at the way the employees are treated by top management.
Posted by: Marian | Oct 21, 2005 6:23:18 PM
There is a poetic typo in this entry:
"Squid says he had the vibe of a heroine addict."
I think you mean heroin addict.
Posted by: Philip | Nov 2, 2005 8:09:26 AM
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I would like to see Portland a leader in ending the drug war, but have no idea of how to accomplishe it, especially after the latest supremes outrage on medical mary jane.
Anyone for states rights? And supreme court appointees that recognize same. Then there is the assisted suicide law.
-30-
(Yes, Sam I know you can identify me)
Posted by: hidden | Sep 21, 2005 7:52:15 AM