UK Harm Reduction Hub: Facilitating and Translating Drug Residue Results to Harm Reduction and Healthcare Partners

UK Harm Reduction Hub The UK Harm Reduction Hub (UKHRH) is an initiative that brings together a transdisciplinary team of academic- and community-based scientists and harm reductionists to provide early insights into Kentucky’s street drug supply through the analysis of drug residue from used syringes. While the UKHRH will foster research projects and collaborations, it exists as a community service first and foremost. Integral to the initiative are two-way feedback loops with the community (i.e., people who use drugs, community-based harm reduction agencies, and healthcare providers partner agencies) to (1) understand how to meaningfully disseminate results and (2) coordinate messaging across all levels (state, local, university). UKHRH is currently co-led by Drs. Rachel Vickers-Smith and Amanda Fallin-Bennett, who are faculty at UK. With additional funding, as well as potentially leveraging internal matching funds, we will hire a half-time Community Research Associate (a person with lived or living experience) to join the leadership team. In addition to this three-person leadership team, we will seek funds to establish a Steering Committee to advise the UKHRH with membership consisting predominantly of individuals with lived or living experience. We currently share lab space and equipment with the UK Department of Toxicology and Cancer Biology. The lab is run by Mike Ward, a certified Toxicological Chemist with 33 years of experience as a forensic toxicologist in the Kentucky Medical Examiner’s Office. Mike will oversee students completing their unpaid internship hours in the lab. Once we are fully operational with our existing resources we will have the capacity to test 150-200 syringes per month. With an additional mass spectrometer and full-time staff person to run the lab, we will be able to dramatically increase our capacity. Community agencies in 15 counties across the state with approximate coverage of 34% of the state’s population have already expressed a desire to partner with UKHRH. However, with our existing resources we will only be able to partner with three agencies in two counties (Jefferson and Fayette). With additional resources, we will be able to partner with all agencies that have expressed interest to date. Our long- term goal is to open up our service to any syringe service program or harm reduction agency across the state.