WFYI Harm Reduction Project
Harm reduction is a public health approach which is being used with strong success to improve the lives of Hoosiers that use substances, including those that inject substances. Emphasizing physical health, social well-being, and quality of life, it aims to accomplish public health goals in the long term, by alleviating the immediate danger of overdose and the long-term impact of highly transmissible infectious diseases like Hepatitis B, C and HIV.
This series of video vignettes are the stories of how harm reduction efforts have changed the public health of Indiana for those who struggle with substance use disorder. Through assertive outreach in a multitude of programs, individual lives have been saved, and communities transformed.
Most of the video for this series was shot prior to the coronavirus outbreak of 2020. Any video shot after March, 2020 was conducted with appropriate health safety precautions.
Peer Recovery Coaches
One of the crucial tools to aid those with SUD is guidance from those in recovery.
Indiana Peer Education Program (INPEP)
An innovative approach towards health education in Indiana prisons.
Scott County SSP
The story of the small rural county where an HIV outbreak Innovated the model for syringe service programs across rural America.
Police Training
Police officers must walk a delicate line between enforcing existing law and serving those who utilize harm reduction efforts.
Syringe Service Programs in Indiana
An overview of a critical public health intervention.
Nate and the Detective
Unable to live with his substance use disorder any longer, Nate Moellering’s life was forever altered by his encounter with an empathetic Ft. Wayne police detective.
WFYI created a long-edit, documentary version of the above clips, “No Harm: The Quiet Secret of Substance Use Recovery”. This documentary can be viewed online at this LINK, or by searching on the PBS streaming app on your smart television.