Sharps containers are used to safely dispose of needles. (Photo: Stephanie Sirois)
A Saint John resident is concerned about how few public places have sharps containers available.
Stephanie Galliah didn’t realize how hard it was to find a safe way to dispose of used needles until she developed gestational diabetes, despite having family members with diabetes.
“It honestly never really crossed my mind to even look for sharps containers before it effected me and now that it has affected me I realize that there is a lack of public access for sharps containers,” she said.
When she’s been out in different places across Saint John, few places have sharps containers. So she posted on Facebook about the problem and got quite a response.
“There was one person who posted that she carries her humira pen after she’s done with it in her purse in a baggie. If she got in a car accident and a paramedic or a police officer went into her purse to try to identify her, there’s a potential for a needle stick injury,” she said.
Stephanie Galliah developed gestational diabetes when she got pregnant and she’s been having a a hard time finding safe places to dispose of needles ever since. (Photo: Screenshot)
Galliah ends up carrying the used needle in the same spot where her unused need and pen are, which creates its own problems of cross contamination.
She said these needles are bio-hazardous and aren’t safe to carry around in a bag because it could create a needle stick injury.
“Why hasn’t anybody said anything about this and how do other diabetics feels about this, because there is a stigma that comes along with a sharps container and the personal containers aren’t small, by any means. You’re looking at a litre-sized container,” she said.
Galliah said there’s a wide range of people who need this service who aren’t getting it due to drug-related stigma and associating the containers with street drug use.
She said she doesn’t care if the containers are used for street drugs, as long as everything is getting disposed of properly and is being kept off the streets or being transported where a possible injury can occur.
“I’d say moving forward there should be a push to end the stigma and also provide the public with what the public needs,” she said.
“When you talk about a public, you talk about everyone in that public.”
