5 overdoses, none fatal, at SafePoint in 2 months before site closed: Health unit

There were five overdoses at SafePoint, Windsor's consumption and treatment site (CTS), in its final two months of operation. 

All of the overdoses were non-fatal. Four of the five overdoses at SafePoint were treated on-site, while one person was taken to hospital, according to new data from the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit. Two overdoses occurred in December, with three in November. 

Over the eight months that SafePoint was open, nearly 250 people visited a total of 1,200 times. 

Clients were able to access social supports in the space including wound care and referrals to other services. 

SafePoint closed on Jan. 1 after not receiving funding from the provincial government. 

The province announced last year it would pause approvals on all new consumption and treatment site applications after a Toronto woman was killed by an errant bullet near a downtown Toronto site. 

According to the health unit, its provincial application is still awaiting approval. 

"The application at this point in time as we stand here today, it continues to be on hold," Eric Nadalin, the health unit's director of public health programs, said Thursday. "Certainly, we're optimistic that we hear soon about the results of their provincial review and get some good news about the future of the site. 

"It is there ready to operate."

While the site remains closed, Nadalin said they've met with regular clients of SafePoint and talked through their options for while SafePoint is closed. 

"Obviously, SafePoint was the only site that was operating supervised consumption in the region," he said. "But there are other things like harm reduction equipment ... test strips that people can access to test their substances before using them.

"Working with all of our partners to make sure that our community wraps wraps ourselves around those clients, so that they continue to be supported although the supervised consumption component won't be there — which is pretty critical for them."

Nadalin said "lives were saved" as a result of SafePoint. 

"Those services won't be there going forward until such time that we receive word from the province on the resumption of their review of the applications," he said.