Editing Needle and syringe programmes (section)

== History==
[[File:Sharps container - cropped.jpg|thumb|[[Sharps container|"Sharps" container]] (for safe disposal of hypodermic needles)]]

Needle-exchange programmes can be traced back to informal activities undertaken during the 1970s. The idea is likely to have been rediscovered in multiple locations. The first government-approved initiative (Netherlands) was undertaken in the early to mid-1980s, followed closely by initiatives in the [[United Kingdom]] and [[Australia]] by 1986.<ref name="ANCD">{{cite web |title=Australia commemorates 20 years of needle syringe programs |url=http://www.atoda.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Australia-commemorates-20-years-of-needle-syringe-programs.pdf |website=atoda.org.au |publisher=Australian National Council on Drugs |access-date=4 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230310061135/http://www.atoda.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Australia-commemorates-20-years-of-needle-syringe-programs.pdf |archive-date=10 March 2023 |date=17 December 2014 |url-status=live}}</ref> While the initial programme was motivated by an outbreak of [[hepatitis B]], the AIDS pandemic motivated the rapid adoption of these programmes around the world.<ref>Ritter, A and Cameron, J (2006) A Systematic Review of Harm Reduction, Drug Policy Modeling Project, Monograph 06, Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Center, University of Melbourne, December.</ref>