379P
POLICE WORK IN A CONTEXT OF HIV PREVENTION STRATEGIES: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY IN DOWNTOWN MONTRÉAL
I Billette1, M Perreault2, S Roy1 ¹Université du Québec à Montréal; 2Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec
Objective: This study identified and analyzed police officers social representations of their interventions directed at marginalized illicit drugs users. The primary goal was to understand how police organizations adapt their regulation of illicit drugs with the emerging health strategies that attempt to limit the impacts of drugs usages (HIV, hepatitis, vulnerability, etc). This recent institutional division of roles in drug control confronts police actions. On the one hand, actors within the health system responsible for harm reduction strategies tolerate usage of illicit drugs. On the other hand, the uses of illicit drugs is still condemn through the "Controlled Drugs and Substances Act" that sanction its possession and police organisations have the mandate to enforce this Act.
Methods: Thirteen in-depth interviews of policemen occupying different decisional positions in Montreal's police service (SPVM) hierarchy were conducted. The interviews were entirely transcribed and then coded using Nvivo software. The coding was analyzed through a systematic qualitative data approach to identify social representations involved in the orientation and organization of police actions.
Results: The policemen felt-necessary actions towards marginalized drug users are closely bound to the following four elements: 1) how they perceive these populations; 2) how they perceive the consequences of illicit drugs use; 3) credence in regulation strategies of these populations; 4) perception of inherent constraints in police work.
Conclusion: These findings show how the felt-necessary actions in police work can oppose the regulation of illicit drugs adopted by health actors, particularly the HIV prevention strategies that aim to stop the spread of the disease among IDUs and marginalized populations.