An approach that focuses on lowering the risks and harms associated with substance use, rather than insisting on immediate total abstinence.
In the context of addiction treatment:
Harm reduction can include things like naloxone distribution, syringe services, safe-use education, and helping people move toward safer patterns or eventual abstinence.
What to know:
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Harm reduction does not “promote drug use”; it recognizes that people are at different stages of readiness for change.
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Many people move from harm reduction strategies into more traditional treatment or abstinence over time.