How Long Have Needle Exchange Programs been in existence?
The first needle exchange program in the world was offered in Amsterdam, (the Netherlands) in 1984. The rationale in establishing the program was that if you can not cure a drug addiction, one should try to minimize the harm that the drug addict does to himself or his environment (Coutinho, R.A, 2000). The British learned from the Dutch and were the first to implement needle exchange programs as a means of reducing the spread of HIV among people who inject drugs. Other European countries and Australian followed. The first official needle exchange program in Canada began in 1989 in Vancouver and within a few months, similar programs emerged in Montreal and Toronto. (http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/drugs/needleexchange.html).
