Mission

The People’s Harm Reduction Alliance operates under the harm reduction philosophy and works to prevent the spread of infectious disease, stop overdose, and help our participants stay healthy.

History

The People’s Harm Reduction Alliance (PHRA) is a community-based nonprofit and drug user empowerment organization that has provided health and harm reduction services to people who use drugs in the Pacific Northwest since 2007.

Philosophy

We are passionate about supporting drug users to live their own best possible lives – however they envision and define that, and on their own terms.  Every day for the past 15 years, we have supported folks on their individual paths to stability, independence, and wellbeing. PHRA operates under the assumption that no one knows what drug users need more than drug users. We choose to accept the reality of drug use and to humanize the people who use drugs by treating them with love and support, not anger and condescension.  In our view, drug users are better served by compassion and respect than by criticism and punishment.

Unlike many needle exchanges, PHRA is need-based instead of 1-for-1, meaning our users do NOT have to dispose of used syringes in order to receive new ones. Research demonstrates need-based exchanges are more effective at reducing the transmission of HIV and Hepatitis C than 1-for-1 distribution practices. PHRA embraces a ‘need-based’ model because we recognize that there is a vital need for clean injection supplies in our community, as evidenced by the extremely high rate of Hepatitis C and by the frequent occurrence of abscesses, cellulitis, and other forms of infection among the drug-using population.

What we do

PHRA strives to serve the needs of the drug-using community by distributing vital harm-reduction supplies within a respectful, non-judgmental context. We operate five programs in western Washington State, as well as a statewide mail-order naloxone program. The supplies that PHRA provides to drug users include new syringes, sterile injection equipment (cookers, cottons, tourniquets, alcohol pads, paperclips ‘handles’ for the cookers), overdose reversal medication naloxone (Narcan), pipes and safer smoking kits, wound care supplies, safer sex supplies, as well as donated socks, warm clothes, and survival gear. PHRA also serves our larger communities by providing syringe disposal, naloxone (Narcan) distribution and training, and through our advocacy work.