SFDPH Harm Reduction Policy

Harm Reduction Policy (Updated for 23-24)

All agencies/programs funded by DPH shall:

Address in their program design and objectives how they will provide harm reduction treatment options.
Develop harm reduction guidelines. This is according to the Resolution of the Health Commission in September of 2000. Click here to see the resolution.
Describe where the agency/program will post the following schedule to ensure that they are available and accessible to all clients (updated schedule can be found here, please scroll down to Syringe Access & Disposal Schedule):
- Up-to-date information about the location and schedule of syringe access and disposal services
- Up-to-date referral information about naloxone access and the schedule of overdose prevention and naloxone distribution services
Include an onsite overdose response policy that describes the steps the agency/program will take in the event that an individual overdoses on property managed by the agency/program or in the presence of agency/program staff.
Ensure that all staff receive training in overdose prevention strategies.
Ensure that all staff participate in at least one annual harm reduction training, provided or sponsored by the Harm Reduction Training Institute (HRTI) (the trainings are either in-person, virtual, self-paced, or recorded) as documented in program records.
Provide low-threshold naloxone distribution to clients/participants. This includes establishing a process to train staff, track distribution and number of overdose reversals, and report overdose reversals to DPH point person.

For technical assistance from the National Harm Reduction Coalition (NHRC), please contact training@harmreduction.org

For more information on San Francisco’s Harm Reduction Policy or the SFDPH Harm Reduction Training Institute trainings, please contact HRTI@sfdph.org

SFDPH Harm Reduction Resolution/Declaration of Compliance

Resolution:

No. 10-00

Adopting a Harm Reduction Policy For Substance Abuse, STD and HIV

WHEREAS, the San Francisco Department of Public Health seeks to reduce adverse health effects to individuals, to individuals’ families and to the broader community through legal and compassionate interventions; and,

WHEREAS, the Harm Reduction model of health care offers multiple non-judgmental approaches to assist clients in their movement toward better health; and,

WHEREAS, the Harm Reduction model is client-centered and attempts to reach clients “where they are at”, to assist them in making choices that lead toward better health; and,

WHEREAS, deaths in the City and County of San Francisco due to injection drug overdoses reached 180 in 1999, the third leading cause of lost years of life; and,

WHEREAS, existing research indicates that 90% of injection drug users who have injected for more than two years are infected with Hepatitis C, and 16% are infected with HIV; and,

WHEREAS, soft tissue infection associated with injection drug use is the leading diagnosis for admission at San Francisco General Hospital’s Emergency Department, leading to 1,400 inpatient admissions in 1999 (costing $18 million), 70% of which were uninsured; and,

WHEREAS, needle exchange, a Harm Reduction program, has proven to decrease further HIV and Hepatitis C infections by providing clients with clean needles with which to inject; and,

WHEREAS, practicing safer sex reduces the likelihood of transmission of sexually transmitted diseases (STD), including HIV; and,

WHEREAS, abstinence-based programs are successful for some individuals, but not all; and,

Health Access Point (HAP)

Resolution:

Adopting a Harm Reduction Policy For Substance Abuse, STD and HIV

Program Courses