Health Canada has approved plans to create four new supervised consumption sites in British Columbia and Quebec to help combat the ongoing overdose crisis gripping the country.

The sites allow people to use illicit drugs under the supervision of a medical professional in case they overdose.

Two of the new sites are in Surrey, B.C., one is in Vancouver and a mobile consumption site has been approved to operate in Montreal.

Health Canada says in a news release that the mobile site is the first of its kind to be approved in Canada, and will provide a "geographically flexible" service to clients.

Canada's two existing supervised consumption sites are both located in Vancouver.

Health Canada says evidence shows supervised consumption sites save lives and decrease the transmission of disease without increasing drug use or crime in the surrounding area.