Thunder Bay's safe consumption site warns of rising overdose rates over the holidays

There have been fewer fatal overdoses in Thunder Bay, Ont., this year compared to last, but Juanita Lawson says one death is one too many.

As chief executive officer of NorWest Community Health Centres, which runs the city's safe consumption site, she knows too well how the deadly opioid crisis has deeply impacted the community at large.

Thunder Bay had the highest per capita rate of opioid-related deaths in Ontario last year. In the first two quarters of 2023, there have been 40 overdose deaths reported by the Office of the Chief Coroner, compared to 84 in 2022.

At Path 525, the only safe consumption site in northwestern Ontario, staff have witnessed 94 overdoses this year. In the presence of health-care professionals, no one has died there, but the mixture of toxic substances seen in the street supply has become increasingly concerning.

Heading into the holidays, Lawson is reminding people of the services they offer and of the importance of getting their drugs tested.

"The stats are really telling us that going into December, going into January, that is an incredibly difficult time for people and that's when we're seeing a lot of overdoses, a lot of deaths," she said.

Not just a place to use drugs

There are 26 supervised consumption sites in Ontario. These locations all have an exemption under the federal government's Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, which means people are allowed to bring in and use substances and not have to worry about being criminally charged, even after they walk out the doors.

But these sites are also places where people can access wraparound supports such as wound care, counselling and addiction treatment, free naloxone kits and pipe and needle kits, Lawson explained.

"That is really one of the reasons why embedding the consumption and treatment service and Path 525 into a primary health-care organization is so important," she said.

"That pathway into other parts of the organization, whether it's a harm reduction activity group or expressive arts group, really encouraging people to engage and creating a safe place for people to do that."

There were 586 visits to Path 525 in October. Of those, 265 used the site for supervised drug consumption.

Drug testingmachine shows deadly substances

For more than a year, Path 525 has had a drug testing machine that allows clients to bring in drugs they've purchased on the street and check to see what's actually in them.

And the results have been shocking for clients, who are told they're buying one thing and end up with something completely different, said Path 525 co-ordinator Nicole Fieduna.

WATCH| How Thunder Bay's drug testing machine works:

How Thunder Bay's drug testing machine works

9 months ago

Duration 0:49

Path 525 in Thunder Bay, Ont., is the only safe consumption site in northwestern Ontario. The CBC's Sarah Law went to see how the site's drug testing machine works, as co-ordinator Nicole Fieduna demonstrates a bulk scan using a bag of sugar.

"There's a lot of cutting agents that are just as dangerous as the actual substances that can be put into it," Fieduna said. "Sometimes instead of a cutting agent being sugar or cocaine, it could also be things that are more concerning."

These include phenacetin, fluorofentanyl, and carfentanil, which can be 10 to 100 times stronger than fentanyl. There's also benzodiazepines, which don't respond to narcan, meaning it can be impossible to reverse the effects of an overdose.

The drug testing machine offers both trace checking and bulk checking, meaning staff either take a small trace of a substance or scan a bulk amount through a clear plastic bag. Both options allow people to make more informed decisions about what they're consuming, said Fieduna.

"It provides clients the choice to even use the substance, and if they are, 'go slow' is something we say. You can always do more, but you can't do less once you've chosen to do it.

"It allows the nurses to guide clients to make the right choice with their substances, but it also gives the power to the clients to have that control in their health," she said.

NorWest also recently received more than $520,000 from Health Canada'sSubstance Use and Addictions Program to keep its safer supply pilot program going. Eligible clients receive prescriptions for oral hydromorphone, a safer alternative to street drugs,and receive assessment, monitoring, and additional supports from health-care workers.

Using alone is dangerous

One message Path 525 wants to send is about the dangers of using drugs alone. About 89 per cent of overdoses happen when people are alone, according to NorWest, which is why the organization encourages people to download the Lifeguard Digital Health app.

The app is free and anonymous and lets people who use drugs set a timer so that emergency responders are notified of their location in case they overdose, signaled by them not turning the timer off. More than 10,000 people have used the app in Thunder Bay but it works across northwestern Ontario, Lawson said.

NorWest uses the app to send out substance alerts when their drug testing machine shows trends of toxic substances to watch out for. The app also includes information about local addiction resources, like the Rapid Access Addictions Medicine Clinic, and how to talk about substance use with loved ones.

"There are times when people are ready to talk about substance use and what's happening in their life, and I think those conversations are very hard for family members and friends," Lawson said.

"But when we see the number of overdoses, which are generally over the last couple of years significantly higher in January, we do really want and encourage family members to reach out."

Path 525 is open seven days a week from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m., with extended hours for drug checking services on Thursdays from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. It is located at 525 Simpson St. in Thunder Bay.