City councillors have unanimously endorsed the creation of a supervised injection site in Hamilton’s downtown core.
The vote followed the presentation of a needs assessment and feasibility study to the city’s board of health Monday afternoon.
Public health officials say it’s about harm reduction and saving lives, but Dr. Laura Bourns acknowledges that their study identified a number of public concerns.
“The most commonly cited concerns about supervised injection sites include the impacts on neighbourhood safety and crime, and its proximity to children,” Dr. Bourns said, “There were also concerns about whether a supervised injection site would be seen as the city endorsing drug use.”
There were 43 accidental opioid-related overdose deaths in 2016 and 235 paramedic responses to suspected overdoses during the first eight months of this year in Hamilton.
Hamilton’s medical officer of health, Dr. Elizabeth Richardson, says it’s about harm reduction, as part of a four-piece approach that also includes treatment, prevention and enforcement.
“It’s there very much to reduce those harms, which are going to happen whether we like it or not because people are using,” Richardson told council. “It is meant to help them move down that continuum and onto treatment. It is not in any way meant to condone or support drug use per se.”
In 2016, there were 43 accidental opioid-related overdose deaths in Hamilton. That is a 400 per cent increase compared to figures from a decade ago.
The site location recommendation was centred on the area between Queen Street, Barton Street, Ferguson Avenue and Main Street. Possible additional sites in the east end and on the mountain are also being considered.