Nathan Aguilar and Sierra Roe from the La Plata County Health Department come to Ignacio Community Library (ICL) twice a month to provide Harm Reduction Services (HRS) for the public. To be honest, when they first started coming here, I didn’t really understand what HRS was, so I took the opportunity to interview them. They were kind enough to field my questions and provide some clarity around the topic.  

HRS “is simply, little things we do in our everyday life that keep us safe and healthy. This could be staying hydrated, going on walks, speaking with friends and family, wearing a seatbelt or a helmet when on a motorcycle. Our program focuses on HR related to substance use, whether that be teaching people about naloxone/FTS, safe use supplies, and reducing internal and external stigma within SU,” according to Aguilar and Roe.  

FTS refers to Fentanyl Test Strips, which can be used to avoid accidental fentanyl ingestion. Along with FTS, Naloxone, an otherwise harmless medication that can reverse an opioid overdose, is one of the products HRS provides. It’s important to remember that “naloxone is not just for individuals who are using illicit substances,” according to Aguilar and Roe, citing a recent case of an older adult who accidentally overdosed by mistakenly double taking a prescribed opiate after a recent surgery. This type of accidental overdose is not uncommon. Any household with prescribed opiates in the medicine cabinet should consider also keeping naloxone.  

Aguilar and Roe stress that one of the primary goals of HRS is “reducing internal and external stigma” around substance abuse. They added, “By decreasing stigma, people would be able to talk about substance use and how it affects themselves and their family. We understand that people always have and will continue using substances. Our main goal is to ensure the safety of individuals within this community.” They shared that although the primary goal of HRS is not to get individuals into recovery, “participants are five times more likely to enter into recovery” than those who do not seek HRS.  

You can find these HRS folks at ICL on the first and third Tuesday of every month from 10-12 in the board room at the top of the stairs, but ICL isn’t the only location to access these services. “Once a week we will offer services at our home office in Durango (185 Suttle St) and at Community Compassion Outreach, and once a month at Lumien Apartments. Other than that, we offer naloxone distribution and STI testing at Manna Resource center three times a month and are expanding testing efforts to CCO an additional two days a month,” they said. CCO stands for Community Compassion Outreach, which is in Durango, Colo.  

Even if you don’t need these services for yourself or your family, feel free to say hello when you see them in the community!