powered by:
valneva canada inc.
somerset west supervised consumption site to close after new provincial rules
experts warn this decision will lead to more overdose deaths and increased pressure on already stretched emergency services.
aug 20 2024
4 minute read
suzanne obiorah, executive director of somerset west community health centre.
tony caldwell
/
postmedia
the ontario government is banning supervised consumption sites within 200 metres of schools and childcare centres — a dramatic policy shift that will shut down 10 of 17 supervised consumption sites across the province, including at ottawa’s somerset west community health centre in centretown.
health minister sylvia jones made the announcement tuesday at the association of municipalities of ontario conference at ottawa’s shaw centre.
she said her government had heard from many parents concerned about their children’s safety around supervised consumption sites. she noted that “violent crime” was up nearly 146 per cent near the somerset site on eccles street.
“our first priority must always be protecting our communities, especially when it comes to the most innocent and vulnerable,” jones said.
the announcement blindsided consumption and treatment services officials in ottawa, who warned it would lead to more overdose deaths, increased pressure on already stretched emergency services and even public disorder.
“we are gravely concerned that the decision to defund and close consumption and treatment services will have devastating consequences for our community,” suzanne obiorah, executive director of the somerset west community health centre, told a hastily arranged news conference tuesday afternoon.
advertisement
advertisement
she said officials who operated supervised consumption sites were not consulted before the announcement.
“our services save lives by providing a safe space. that is what cts (consumption and treatment) services were designed to do, to reverse overdoses and prevent deaths and connect people to the services they need. consumption and treatment services are a cornerstone of harm reduction.”
she said somerset west was selected to offer consumption and treatment services because its community had the second-highest rate of overdose deaths and the second-highest rate of blood-borne infections in the city.
in 2023, she said, staff successfully overturned 487 overdoses, “which will now be 911 calls for paramedics to pick up.”
in addition to closing more than half the existing supervised consumption sites in the province, the ontario government will prohibit any new supervised consumption sites from opening or any participation in federal funding for safer supply initiatives.
jones also announced a $378-million investment to set up 19 new homelessness and addiction recovery treatment hubs (the hart model) that will provide primary care; mental health services; addiction care support; social services and employment support; shelter and transition beds; supportive housing; and other supplies and services, including naloxone.
advertisement
advertisement
those hubs will not provide safe drug supply, supervised consumption or needle exchange programs.
locations such as somerset west, where supervision consumption sites are being closed, will be given priority to apply to become one of the hubs, she said. the supervised consumption sites are to close by the end of next march.
even before the formal announcement, supporters of supervised consumption sites were raising concerns that the move would increase the already growing number of overdose deaths across the province.
representatives of horizons ottawa staged a protest outside the announcement in the shaw centre, saying the decision would lead to needless deaths.
the head of the registered nurses association of ontario, doris grinspun, called the policy shift a “death sentence” for people who use drugs.
in a statement, the rnao said the new measures would endanger the lives of thousands of ontarians struggling with substance use.
“the announced steps mean unsafe communities, more deaths, overwhelmed emergency services and spiking health-care costs, and leave nurses wondering who the government is trying to serve.”
rob boyd, who heads inner city health in ottawa, said the hub plan for supportive housing without harm reduction would be fatal to some. people who struggle with substance use have a high rate of relapse and often relapse numerous times during treatment. without access to harm reduction services, the plan for treatment hubs will be dangerous for many, he said.
advertisement
advertisement
“we are gutted by this news today,” boyd said.
robin mcandrew, executive director of the sandy hill community health centre, said she was fully supportive of additional treatment strategies, but “reducing one service to direct resources to another will not solve our issue.
“we are going to need to prepare for serious impact in lives lost, impact on emergency services and societal disorder. the hart model will be a wonderful addition, but it is devastating that it comes at a cost of lower barrier pathways to treatment.”
when asked by reporters to respond to concerns that the changes will mean people will die, jones responded:
“people are not going to die. they are going to get access to services. i do not call watching people inject an illicit drug health care in the province of ontario. we need to do better and we can do better.”
our website is your destination for up-to-the-minute news, so make sure to bookmark our homepage and sign up for our newsletters so we can keep you informed.
share story
