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- Are safe consumption sites the answer to fixing Ottawa's drug crisis?
Are safe consumption sites the answer to fixing Ottawa's drug crisis?
The Lookout chatted with Suzanne Obiorah is the Executive Director of the Somerset West Community Health Centre

It’s 12:00 pm on a Thursday in mid-December, and drug users are walking through the doors of the Somerset West Community Health Centre. Inside is a safe injection site that they can use in front of a team of medical officials who are there to ensure they are cared for in the event of an overdose.
It's part of a harm reduction plan to get users off the streets while also making sure they don’t die because of their addictions. And it has had successful results. Last year, the team at Somerset West saved 487 lives with the use of Narcan, an opioid antagonist used to reverse the effects of an overdose.
North America’s first safe consumption site opened in Vancouver in 2003. Today, there are only about 100 worldwide, including 38 in Canada. But Ontario is now set to close 10 sites — including the Somerset West location.
The reason? Ontario Health Minister Sylvia Jones said she doesn’t “call watching someone inject an illicit drug to be health care.” Harm reduction workers disagree.
In their place will be HART hubs (Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment). Nineteen will open province-wide as part of a $378 million investment. The government of Ontario, in a press release, says this will protect the “safety of children and families while improving access to recovery and treatment services."
So why are the sites closing in the first place?
In March, it was announced that new laws would ban injection sites within 200 meters of schools or childcare facilities.
“Communities, parents and families across Ontario have made it clear that the presence of consumption sites near schools and daycares is leading to serious safety problems,” said Sylvia Jones, the province’s Minister of Health, during a speech in Ottawa last March.
“We need to do more to protect public safety, especially for young school children, while helping people get the treatment they need,” she continued. “That’s why we’re taking the next step to expand access to a broad range of treatment and recovery services while keeping kids and communities safe.”
Somerset West was forced to close due to its proximity to Nanny Goat Hill Nursery School, which is about 180 meters away. St. Anthony Catholic School is also about 400 meters away.
The province noted that that community has also seen a large uptick in crime. The Ontario government said Centretown has seen a 146 percent increase in crime, though there was no data to back up that number, and many people feel it’s wrong.
Police wouldn't comment if those stats were true and said a freedom of information request would need to be filed. CTV has done that but has still not heard back.
Ottawa’s crime map paints a different picture. Violent crime was down by an average of 6.2 percent in Somerset ward between 2017-2018 and 2022-2023. That included a 4.7 percent drop in the rate of assaults, a 10.3 percent drop in the rate of sexual assaults and a 14.5 percent drop in rates of robbery. Break and enter and possession of stolen goods also decreased significantly. Some crimes, on the other hand, including drug offences, weapons offences, theft under $5,000, fraud, and disturbing the peace, did increase.
Safe injection sites save lives, says Somerset West Health Centre
Suzanne Obiorah is the Executive Director of the Somerset West Community Health Centre. She said they were completely blindsided when told the facility would be closed without consultation.
Somerset West has since applied to become a HART Hub and was accepted. Its goal is to be operational by April 1. The Lookout sat down with Obiorah to learn more about what this will mean for users, the community, and the health centre. Answers have been edited for length and clarity.
Lookout: You have applied to become a HART hub. Can you tell our readers a bit about why you think this would benefit the community?
Obiorah: We will offer a number of programs and services that Somerset West currently provides. These programs are meant to connect people who are experiencing homelessness, mental health challenges, and/or substance use challenges to health and treatment services as well as supportive housing options.
We currently serve a diverse number of communities, including people who are experiencing homelessness or are living with mental health and or substance use challenges. This transition to this model enables us to continue serving this community.
Lookout: Will this be enough? It doesn’t sound like many new services are being added. How is it different from safe injection sites?
Obiorah: They serve different purposes. Our consumption and treatment services allow people to come to our centre and use drugs under supervision. They can also connect to many other supports and services at the centre. If someone was at risk of or if they were to overdose, we can respond to that, and we could also do needle exchange. This model is different in that clients are not able to use drugs, we are not able to do needle exchange, and we are not able to offer safer supply programs.
There is a gap that emerges as a result. What we can do is continue to provide medical services, mental health treatment support, and connection to income and employment opportunities, and what we are excited about is new partnerships to directly connect people to 24/7 supportive housing. We’ve acquired at least 65 units where we can quickly connect individuals to be housed and recover the support they need to stay housed.

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