Ontario appoints supervisor, starts new review of Riverdale consumption site

Ontario's Ministry of Health is appointing a supervisor for a Toronto consumption and treatment services site that has been the focus of increased scrutiny after a bystander was shot and killed nearby.

The province says Jill Campbell, a former executive at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, will have full decision making authority on any improvements to the operations and safety at the site that are recommended after a review is completed.

Karolina Huebner-Makurat, a 44-year-old mother of two, was killed by a stray bullet in the summer near a consumption site at the South Riverdale Community Health Centre in Toronto's east end following a physical altercation between three men.

Some residents raised safety concerns around the site and Health Minister Sylvia Jones launched a "critical incident review," which a spokesperson says involves consulting with public health, reviewing complaints against the site and developing a new incident reporting template.

The government says a broader Ministry of Health review of all 16 other sites is ongoing, but it has now also tasked the Unity Health Toronto hospital network with conducting what it calls a comprehensive, third-party review of the Riverdale site.

The deputy minister of health and Chief Medical Officer of Health write in a joint letter to residents of the area that the review will include "the operations of the site and the suitability CTS operations within community health centres."