Regina organization seeking community feedback on proposed supervised consumption site
The Nēwo-Yōtina Friendship Centre is asking the Regina Heritage community to provide feedback on the proposed development of a long-term supervised consumption site.
The site will help prevent overdoses in the Heritage neighbourhood, the organization said. The centre is inviting the community to fill out a short survey to give their input.
“If someone is going to use drugs anyways, it’s best for them to be in the safest environment possible where there are also services to help them if they want to get help for their addictions,” said Nicola Kimber, mental wellness support worker at the centre.
“I don’t see drugs going anywhere. It’s always going to be here and it’s going to get worse and people need to be educated and understand,” said Fernanda Horse, resolution health support worker at the centre.
The centre is applying for federal exemption for their building at 1635 11th Ave. to host the site.
An exemption under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act is necessary to be able to operate the site since it is prohibited to possess controlled substances to operate a supervised consumption site for medical purposes in Canada, according to the Government of Canada.
“It’s important to get that exemption because it’s important to have safe injection sites in Regina, so that we’re helping our community out, so that we’re lowering HIV stats and we’re lowering overdose stats,” said Emile Gariepy, harm reduction manager at the centre.
“Getting an inhalation room in here would mean that we can prevent even more overdoses because most of the overdoses that I do to are just somebody who has smoked fentanyl.”
Following successful completion of an application, Health Canada would grant an exemption to the site. However, that does not always mean the site will be available to the public yet.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.