During annual update, WECHU asked about SafePoint in Windsor

Local Journalism Initiative
·3 min read

When providing Essex County Council with the annual overview of Windsor Essex County Health Unit (WECHU) operations, Councillors had a few questions regarding the Windsor-based SafePoint program.

During the thorough presentation outlining WECHU’s many services, Eric Nadalin, Program Director of Oral Health, Chronic Disease, Injury & Substance, explained one of the more highly publicized and more topical areas that occupies a large amount of staff time, regards the use of opioids and other substances.

“Substance use in our community is no secret, it’s a major issue,” he told County Council. “To that end, the Health Unit shows leadership.” He spoke of partnerships with municipalities and agencies, with WECHU serving as the backbone organization behind the Windsor-Essex community opioid and substance strategy.

The WECHU is the hub for Naloxone distribution to partner agencies, and enrolls new agencies to that program almost on a monthly basis. He estimated there are currently around two-dozen community partners.

Another focus in this area includes public awareness around overdose prevention and the benefits of harm-reduction as a service.

“We were the lead agency in the establishment of SafePoint, our region’s first supervised consumption facility, including all of the work to get that up and running,” Nadalin said.

That facility is currently on pause, he noted.

The WECHU also develops and distributes resources of referral pathways and system navigation for those looking for treatment. It also develops new resources, so individuals know where to go when they need help.

Nadalin noted the WECHU also monitors overdose in the community through an alert system, the Windsor-Essex Substance Overdose Notification System. When overdose alerts are issued, those are generated with data obtained through the epidemiology and evaluation departments. That notifies the community there may be a potentially toxic substance in circulation.

Tecumseh Mayor Gary McNamara is the Chairperson of the Provincial Public Health Transformation Group, in particular the Safe Injection Site.

He believes it is critical for the region to continue to push hard, including at the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) level, as well.

“I think it is critical,” he said. “One of the points we have made is the impact it has on municipal finances as well. Not just in terms of what we contribute for public health, but in our policing, our EMS, our fire services are being impacted.”

That includes social services and social housing.

“All of those are being highly impacted,” McNamara said, adding that the nine months the Safe Injection Site was open in Windsor, “We could see the dramatic changes and shift, and reduction in deaths and also visits to the EMS, Police, Fire, and certainly emergency services.”

He commended the Health Unit for being, “Stalwart in that program,” and also as a frontrunner with the partnership with Hotel Dieu Grace Hospital.

“It is the model the Province of Ontario should adopt,” McNamara said. “We will do everything we can at our end to convince our Provincial counterparts.”

Essex Mayor Sherry Bondy asked if the WECHU believes the Province will come back to the table with funding and if they foresee the site being reopened. If the Province does not commit funding, would the WECHU be looking to take over the programming?

Dr. Ken Blanchette, Medical Officer of Health, noted the WECHU is waiting for the review at the provincial-level to be completed. At this point, the local health agency has no other information.

“From our perspective, we need to be mindful and patient for that piece to happen, before we look at any other avenue for that.”

According to the WECHU meeting agenda for January, SafePoint operated for a period of eight months, recording a total of 1,257 client visits amongst 248 unique clients.

Its operation was paused, effectively as of January 1.

In October, the Province announced it was pausing approval for new supervised sites as it undertook a review.

Sylene Argent, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Essex Free Press

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