Are you experienced? Peer counsellors wanted for Victoria drug consumption site

Island Health is looking for people with a history of personal drug useto support clients at the first supervised consumption site on Vancouver Island.

"Persons with lived experience" will providepeer support to help clientsaccess the consumption services and arrange referrals to health, social and other programs, according to the health authority's request for proposals that was issued this week.

The health authority also called for bids to by community organizations to providemore conventional staffing byharm-reduction workers who will check inclients,overseesubstance use andrespondto overdoses.

"Island Health has found that peers with lived experience play a vital role within our interdisciplinary teams in hospitals and at overdose prevention sites," Island Health's Chief Medical Health Officer, Dr. RichardStanwick, said in a statement.

The supervised consumption site, scheduled to open in spring 2018,will offer 10 semi-private boothswhere people can use drugs with supervision. It will also be staffed by a registered nurse, a social program officer and a clinician who will manage the consumption room and overdose response.

The facility, which is currently under renovation, is located at 941Pandora Avenue, a few doors froman existing overdose prevention site that opened as a temporary measure a year ago,outside the Our Place facility.

Kelly Reid, the director of adult mental health and substance use services for the South Island, said it will be critical to have people on staff who understand why and how people use drugs.

"Often our peers are as experienced or more experienced in saving lives than anyone else," Reid said.

Reid says staff members who have used drugs may still be struggling with addictions, and Island Health may have to be flexible with its employee policies.

"Clearly we won't be having peers on site who have recently used and are still experiencing the effects of recent use," he said.

"We need individuals who are able to support the work required to ensure that substance use is done in a safe fashion."

BerniePauly,aUVicnursing associate professor and researcher with the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research, saidincluding peers in patient care is a growing trend.

Paulytold On the Island host Gregor Craigieit's important for people with lived experience of drug use to be part of the design, and not just the operation of the new safe consumption facility.

Meanwhile, she said, it is '"absolutely critical" that overdose prevention sitesthat were opened as a temporary measure in late 2016 remain in operation after the supervised consumption service opens.

Paulysaid more than 4,000 overdoses have been reversed at 18 overdose prevention sites across B.C. over the past year. Four of those overdose prevention sites are in Victoria.

While the supervised consumption site will offer a wider range of services, Pauly said, "to think that a supervised consumption service in one location can replace the other four existing services is absolutely unrealistic and it will result in overdose deaths."

With files from Megan Thomas