Leo Beletsky1, Jess Cochrane1, Anne L Sawyer1, Chris Serio-Chapman1, Marina Smelyanskaya1, Jennifer Han1, Natanya Robinowitz1, Susan G Sherman1. 1. Leo Beletsky is with the School of Law and Bouvé College of Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston, MA. At the time of the study, Jess Cochrane was with the Northeastern University School of Law and Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston. Chris Serio-Chapman, Jennifer Han, and Natanya Robinowitz were with the Baltimore City Health Department, Baltimore, MD. Susan G. Sherman and Anne L. Sawyer were with the Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore. Marina Smelyanskaya is an independent consultant in Baltimore.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: We piloted a monitoring mechanism to document police encounters around programs targeting people who inject drugs (PWID), and assessed their demographic predictors at 2 Baltimore, Maryland, needle exchange program (NEP) sites. METHODS: In a brief survey, 308 clients quantified, characterized, and sited recent police encounters. Multivariate linear regression determined encounter predictors, and we used geocoordinate maps to illustrate clusters. RESULTS: Within the past 6 months, clients reported a median of 3 stops near NEP sites (interquartile range [IQR] = 0-7.5) and a median of 1 arrest in any location (IQR = 0-2). Three respondents reported police referral to the NEP. Being younger (P = .009), being male (P = .033), and making frequent NEP visits (P = .02) were associated with reported police stops. Among clients reporting arrest or citation for syringe possession, Whites were significantly less likely than non-Whites to report being en route to or from an NEP (P < .001). Reported encounters were clustered around NEPs. CONCLUSIONS: Systematic surveillance of structural determinants of health for PWID proved feasible when integrated into service activities. Improved monitoring is critical to informing interventions to align policing with public health, especially among groups subject to disproportionate levels of drug law enforcement.
OBJECTIVES: We piloted a monitoring mechanism to document police encounters around programs targeting people who inject drugs (PWID), and assessed their demographic predictors at 2 Baltimore, Maryland, needle exchange program (NEP) sites. METHODS: In a brief survey, 308 clients quantified, characterized, and sited recent police encounters. Multivariate linear regression determined encounter predictors, and we used geocoordinate maps to illustrate clusters. RESULTS: Within the past 6 months, clients reported a median of 3 stops near NEP sites (interquartile range [IQR] = 0-7.5) and a median of 1 arrest in any location (IQR = 0-2). Three respondents reported police referral to the NEP. Being younger (P = .009), being male (P = .033), and making frequent NEP visits (P = .02) were associated with reported police stops. Among clients reporting arrest or citation for syringe possession, Whites were significantly less likely than non-Whites to report being en route to or from an NEP (P < .001). Reported encounters were clustered around NEPs. CONCLUSIONS: Systematic surveillance of structural determinants of health for PWID proved feasible when integrated into service activities. Improved monitoring is critical to informing interventions to align policing with public health, especially among groups subject to disproportionate levels of drug law enforcement.
Authors: Samuel R Friedman; Hannah Lf Cooper; Barbara Tempalski; Maria Keem; Risa Friedman; Peter L Flom; Don C Des Jarlais Journal: AIDS Date: 2006-01-02 Impact factor: 4.177
Authors: Shruti H Mehta; Noya Galai; Jacquie Astemborski; David D Celentano; Steffanie A Strathdee; David Vlahov; Kenrad E Nelson Journal: J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr Date: 2006-11-01 Impact factor: 3.731
Authors: Joseph J Amon; Richard S Garfein; Linda Ahdieh-Grant; Gregory L Armstrong; Lawrence J Ouellet; Mary H Latka; David Vlahov; Steffanie A Strathdee; Sharon M Hudson; Peter Kerndt; Don Des Jarlais; Ian T Williams Journal: Clin Infect Dis Date: 2008-06-15 Impact factor: 9.079
Authors: Ju Nyeong Park; Susan G Sherman; Saba Rouhani; Kenneth B Morales; Michelle McKenzie; Sean T Allen; Brandon D L Marshall; Traci C Green Journal: J Urban Health Date: 2019-06 Impact factor: 3.671
Authors: Andrea M Lopez; Matthew Thomann; Zena Dhatt; Julieta Ferrera; Marwa Al-Nassir; Margaret Ambrose; Shane Sullivan Journal: Am J Public Health Date: 2022-04 Impact factor: 9.308
Authors: Marcelo H Fernández-Viña; Nadya E Prood; Adam Herpolsheimer; Joshua Waimberg; Scott Burris Journal: Public Health Rep Date: 2020 Jul/Aug Impact factor: 2.792
Authors: Sean T Allen; Suzanne M Grieb; Rebecca Hamilton White; Allison O'Rourke; Michael E Kilkenny; Christopher M Jones; Carl Latkin; Susan G Sherman Journal: J Infect Dis Date: 2020-09-02 Impact factor: 5.226