The Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit (HKPR Health Unit) stopped just short of endorsing an unsanctioned consumption site for illegal drugs that is being started in Cobourg.
“Supervised consumption services, both sanctioned and/or unsanctioned, provide rapid access to naloxone which may temporarily reverse the effects of an opioid overdose,” says Dorothea Service, Manager of Healthy Families and Harm Reduction with the HKPR District Health Unit.
“We understand TweakEasy Cobourg is being established in response to drug poisonings and overdoses in our community with the intent to save lives,”
The Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit (HKPR District Health Unit) focuses on harm reduction through policies, programs and practices that aim to reduce the adverse health, social and economic consequences of using legal and illegal psychoactive drugs.
The HKPR District Health Unit offers harm reduction programming including:
Monitoring drug poisonings across the County of Haliburton, City of Kawartha Lakes and Northumberland County through the HKPR District Health Unit’s Opioid Overdose Report Dashboard.
Supporting the Haliburton, Kawartha Lakes and Northumberland Drug Strategy.
Establishing an opioid response plan.
Providing Naloxone, needles, syringes, and inhalation supplies to individuals who use drugs.
Unsanctioned supervised consumption services (Overdose Prevention Site) are one type of harm reduction intervention that aim to reduce harm and death associated with drug use. The TweakEasy Overdose Prevention Cobourg program is community-driven and volunteer-run. TweakEasy Cobourg offers a space for individuals to consume drugs and receive help. In the event of an overdose, 9-1-1 is called immediately.
Unsanctioned Overdose Prevention Site Coming to Cobourg – Like It or Not
Author: Pete Fisher
Has been a photojournalist for over 30-years and have been honoured to win numerous awards for photography and writing over the years. Best selling author for the book Highway of Heroes - True Patriot Love
