In 25 years of operation, MSIC has seen over 18,000 clients walk through the door, supervised over 1.35 million injections, and managed over 12,000 overdoses. Not one person has died on its premises. 

The mammoth figures and 25-year tenure are no easy feat. The story of how MSIC got here, through political battles, community resistance, tabloid fearmongering, and sheer determination, is one worth telling again, especially as we look ahead to what comes next. 

Your body goes through a lot when you overdose, especially if you're unconscious for any amount of time. Some of these lesser-known effects don't show up for hours or even days. Understanding these uncommon overdose risks means you can look after yourself and the people around you. Here’s what you need to know.

A NUAA staff member shares their personal journey through abstinence-based recovery, lateral violence, and the transformative discovery of harm reduction, and what it means to truly support people who use drugs.

How a drug enters your body — the route of administration — can really change how it feels, how fast it hits, and how long it lasts. Knowing the risks associated with the different routes of administration will help you make choices to reduce these risks. 

Written at the close of the NSW Drug Checking Trial, Drug Checking Lead Clancy reflects on their time in the role. Drawing on a year of insight they ask a deceptively simple question: if most harm reduction happens invisibly, in communities, without any professional input at all, what are we actually measuring when we evaluate the services we can see?

The music was loud, the crowds were sweaty, and somewhere in the thick of it all, near the medical tent, in the middle of a mosh pit, or crouched beside someone on the grass, there were the wolves.  

DanceWize NSW have just wrapped up another summer festival season, and boy was it a big one. 

As the season winds down and the team takes a well-earned breather, we asked some of the crew to reflect on what it's been like out there on the ground. 

“Hepatitis C (HCV) is an easily curable condition.” That is the message health campaigns tend to broadcast.  Yet for many people living with hep C in rural and remote areas of New South Wales and beyond, the path from diagnosis to cure is far from easy. 

This edition of Users News draws on conversations with Rodd Hinton, NUAA’s BBV & Outreach Lead, and Andy Heslop, NUAA’s Chairperson who lives regionally himself. 

As Mardi Gras season heats up, more LGBTQ+ community members are opting for house parties and underground events over costly ticketed festivals, but smaller gatherings come with their own risks. ACON's harm reduction project Between the Lines shares resources and information about a free upcoming Party Safe 101 event specifically designed to build helpful skills this Mardi Gras season.

It’s Your Right was designed by and for people who use drugs, and was developed to promote hep C testing and treatment to people who inject drugs. The campaign is part of a broader national strategy to work towards eliminating hepatitis C as a public health threat in Australia.  

In this edition of Users News, Yvonne, Hep C Custodial Campaign Coordinator at AIVL and Brie, Outreach Lead at NUAA have shared some words about the campaign, its history, and how to get involved.