(Photo: NorthReach Society website)

By Abby Zieverink

Supervised Consumption Site

Supervised Consumption Site sees over three years of service in Grande Prairie

Mar 25, 2022 | 8:13 AM

March 2022 marks the third anniversary of the mobile Supervised Consumption Site (SCS) in Grande Prairie.

SCS Clinical Lead Tracy Pelgrim believes the SCS continues to have a huge impact on the Grande Prairie community.

“With our community, it has really had an impact of less use in back alleys and places where people can’t be seen.”

Although addictions and the opioid crisis do not appear to be going away anytime soon, having the SCS in the Swan City helps to keep those in the community safe, explains Pelgrim.

Not only is the SCS a safe space for drug users but the staff at the consumption site also strive to refer clients when they are ready, to outside services in the community for clean support.

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“Having a site as we have, gives our clients a chance to get the help they are wanting before it’s too late and we help connect with those opportunities.”

Since opening in Grande Prairie on March 11, 2019, to November 30, 2021, the SCS saw 23,621 visits by 401 individuals.

Of those individuals, 2,005 clients received referrals to external health and social services. That included 115 referrals to detox, 59 referrals to treatment, and 192 referrals to Opioid Dependency Programs.

Over the past three years, Pelgrim says they have been able to see how safe clients feel when they come into the facility.

“When they’re with us on our unit, they trust us wholly to help them with their medical care as well as help them when they’re consuming their drug of choice.”

With that, the SCS has also helped prevent overdose deaths.

From March 2019 to February 2022 at the SCS, 361 overdoses were responded to by staff with no fatalities.

Pelgrim says the mobile SCS has a high focus on wraparound services, adding that staff help patients in a variety of different ways, whether it be gathering IDs, or helping with medical and doctors’ appointments.

“When clients come to our site, we don’t push it on them, we wait until they are ready, and then once they are, we help them with whatever they need help with.”

Pelgrim tells EverythingGP they are looking at bringing in some addiction counselling and possibly Nurse Practitioners within the near future.