The Uniting Medically Supervised Injecting Centre (MSIC) has just celebrated 25 years since opening its doors in Kings Cross. It was the first harm reduction service of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere. A quarter of a century later, there are still only two in Australia. The other is in Melbourne.
The Sydney service opened in May 2001 amid much controversy. It would not have opened at all if the Uniting Church had not agreed to host the service, with strong support from the late Reverend Harry Herbert AM.
Dr Marianne Jauncey, Medical Director of MSIC, says of Herbert, “I think it needed somebody with his vision, his unwavering steadfast commitment, to doing what was right. He believed it was right because it was about reaching out to support and help people who had very little of that in their life.”
Harry Herbert was a lifelong advocate for the most vulnerable people. He helped create Uniting NSW.ACT. It is now a major not-for-profit organisation delivering community services and advocacy for people across the life cycle.
A service like MSIC, on the wild streets of Kings Cross, was right up Herbert’s alley. It prevents death and injury from overdose, offers non-judgmental care and support, and amplifies the voices of its clients. He considered it one of the major achievements of his life.
The current service continues to keep the wellbeing and voices of its clients at the forefront of all it does. To mark the 25-year milestone, comedian and artist Gretel Killeen launched MSIC’s 16th annual exhibition, Art from the Heart of the Cross, at Paddington Town Hall from 16-19 October 2026. The theme is Beyond Stigma. The 133 artworks can be viewed online, with visitors invited to bid for them in a silent auction. The auction ends at midnight on 28 October 2026. All proceeds go directly to the artists.
Dr Jauncey spoke to me just after the launch. She highlighted her gratitude to Uniting and spoke of “a moment of revelation” when she realised why the work of the Medically Supervised Injecting Centre was such a “good fit” with Uniting.
Years ago, Jauncey and her team sat down to draft a statement of the principles that underpin their work. They started by reading Uniting’s vision at the time: “a just, fair and compassionate world in which all people are treated with dignity and respect and enabled to be part of their society”. Jauncey says the room went silent for a moment. Then they all agreed. “Well, that’s us then!”
Working with Uniting has changed Jauncey’s approach to public health and the practice of medicine. “I’ve learnt the importance of being very explicit about our values and not being apologetic about them. In the past I would primarily talk about the medical evidence and that is important. The evidence can tell you how to get somewhere most efficiently, but it doesn’t tell you what direction you should be headed in. If you want to live in a dignified, respectful society in which people are welcomed exactly as they are, then that dictates the type of medicine you want to practise. And the type of organisation you want to run and the way you want to do it.”
“Our clients come to a service that welcomes them exactly as they are,” Jauncey says. “And the Uniting Church has a tagline of ‘welcoming you exactly as you are’. This is a profound value we share.”
Art from the Heart of the Cross: View the exhibition and artworks online.
