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Nurse practitioner warns stricter syringe-service rules could raise infections; UNH researcher offers free Dover replication
Summary
At a Rochester Boards & Committees meeting, a nurse practitioner warned that restrictive syringe-service policy could raise blood-borne infection risks and interrupt disposal services. Dr. Carrie Nolte of the University of New Hampshire cited a Dover pilot with a 61% drop in discarded syringes and offered to replicate the study for Rochester at no cost.
A nurse practitioner and longtime volunteer with New Hampshire Harm Reduction told the Rochester Boards & Committees that strict limits on syringe-service programs could increase transmission of blood-borne pathogens and deprive residents of vital disposal options.
"I offer myself as a resource to you as a nurse practitioner with 25 years of experience," the nurse practitioner said during public comment, adding that she is an "accidental harm reductionist" who has volunteered with the New Hampshire Harm Reduction effort since its inception.
Dr. Carrie Nolte, associate professor of nursing at the University of New Hampshire and a nurse practitioner with the Health Care for the Homeless mobile van project, told the committee she has worked with Dover and its police department on a two-year pilot targeting discarded syringes. "We've seen a 61% reduction in the areas that we've specifically targeted," Nolte said, and she offered to replicate that study in Rochester at no cost through an offer from a Charitable Foundation and the New Hampshire Harm Reduction Coalition.
Nolte and the public commenter both warned that the city's ordinance, as currently written, creates limits for mobile outreach and for one-for-one exchange models. Nolte said SOS is currently operating only in an outreach capacity and does not have a dependable, consistent site where people can reliably go for services and disposal.
"I am sure that you are likely to see an increase in your overdose rates in the next 6 months," Nolte told the committee, arguing that barring local organizations from operating would prevent both services and the ability to study syringe litter and disposal patterns.
Both speakers urged the committee to regulate distribution practices if there were problems with how syringes were being distributed, rather than removing disposal options: "If that's what the distribution was, sure. Let's regulate it," Nolte said.
The public comments closed with the speakers emphasizing partnership: volunteers, health-care providers and community groups said they could assist with outreach, data collection and safe disposal if the committee allowed mobile and nonprofit-led services to continue.
No formal vote or motion occurred during the public-comment period; the committee did not announce any immediate changes to the ordinance during the remarks.
