An unofficial overdose prevention site in Campbell River is no longer running.
That comes from Family and Addictions Doctor Erika Kellerhalls, who was in charge of the site operated by Doctors for Safer Drug Policy. The site was set up to let people safely use already-obtained substances, with staff monitoring them.
The group started running it on Sunday at North Island Hospital, with original plans to run it until Thursday.
While it saw support from some community members, Kellerhalls says the day they started, hospital security asked them to leave the hospital grounds.
“We figured it would happen, we complied with that, and we were set up on a vacant area across from the hospital,” said Kellerhalls.“City Bylaw came Monday and told us we weren’t allowed to be there and not allowed to have tents up. We were told to take the tents down or get arrested.”
She says the group took the tents down, instead running a protest against the closure of the site on Tuesday.
She adds the choice to run the site on hospital grounds was due to several reasons.
“11 months ago, we were promised hospital overdose prevention sites across BC hospitals, and these sites are needed,” said Kellerhalls. “We continue to see people overdosing in hospitals, around hospitals. We have hospital staff getting exposed inadvertently to second-hand smoke. Since that announcement came up, there’s been access points to other harm reduction initiatives removed from the hospital.”
By holding the site at hospital grounds, the group is asking for Island Health, the health ministry, experts and those who use substances to sit down and make plans to prevent more overdose deaths.
