CALGARY—The city’s only supervised consumption site has the green light to continue operating after its Health Canada exemption was set to expire at the end of day Thursday.

But Sheldon M. Chumir Health Centre’s status will be reviewed in four months to make sure it has addressed concerns related to public disorder and crime.

All supervised consumption sites need a federal exception from the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act in order to have illegal drugs on the property. The Sheldon M. Chumir supervised injection site got a one-year exemption last January, and is one of just seven approved sites in Alberta listed on Health Canada’s website.

Supervised consumption sites provide a safer and hygienic area for people to take drugs, overseen by trained staff. The sites also connect people to health and social services, provide sterile equipment, and staff can administer naloxone to reverse opioid overdoses.

But the site has faced controversy, most recently this week, after a Calgary Police Service report showed a 36 per cent increase in emergency response calls to the Sheldon M. Chumir since the site opened, many related to public disorder and crime. Evan Woolley, city councillor for Ward 8, where the supervised consumption site is, and police said this report parallels concerns they’ve heard from residents and local business owners.

Health Canada said certain conditions would need to be met for the site to continue to operate, and cited the police report as a factor in imposing a review in the spring.

“The exemption includes conditions to address the needle debris, public disorder, and neighbourhood safety issues raised in the Calgary Police Service report,” Health Canada’s release said.

“The renewal is for a period of one year and the exemption will be reviewed in four months.”

The national health department can revoke this exemption if it decides the conditions aren’t being met.

Alberta Health Services (AHS) reports the supervised consumption site has reversed more than 800 overdoses since opening in October 2017, and has provided more than 400 referrals to other services.

Since its opening to the end of 2018, AHS said the site has had 54,473 client visits.

In a statement released after Health Canada’s announcement Thursday, AHS said it was pleased to be granted a one-year exemption, and it is committed to providing the national department with information on crime measures in the area, and its community engagement.

“AHS recognizes community concerns related to crime and disorder in the neighbourhood and is committed to being a good neighbour. These concerns will be addressed through ongoing work involving the community, AHS, Calgary Police Service and the City of Calgary,” AHS said in the statement.

The statement also said an interim opioid report that will be released by Alberta Health on Friday shows 582 people died from an opioid overdose between Jan. 1 and Nov. 11, 2018, almost 120 more people than in the same period in 2017. Alberta Health’s data will also reportedly show that Calgary’s rate of overdose deaths continued to rise in 2018.

University of Calgary Cumming School of Medicine assistant professor Rebecca Haines-Saah supports the continued use of supervised consumption sites. While she says it’s too early to call the Sheldon M. Chumir site a success or a failure, she said the number of people who’ve accessed the service has indicated its value.

But she’s been disappointed to hear some of the public backlash from area residents.

“For me, as a sociologist working in public health on this issue, it just speaks to the incredibly entrenched stigma,” Haines-Saah said.

“It’s disheartening to me when I think there’s an opportunity for us to support people who are very marginalized and who use substances in our community.”

Haines-Saah added that beyond even reversing overdoses, referrals to other health service supports makes the site meaningful for its clients.

Metro City Medical Clinic is one service that has received those referrals. It opened in 2016 in downtown Calgary to treat opioid addiction. Dr. Rajdeep Kandola, one of the clinic’s physicians, said they often see clients who have accessed the supervised consumption site first.

“It does seem to be all part of the same spectrum of services. And given it’s such a severe crisis, I think taking multiple approaches is the best strategic approach. But I think the most humane approach is to meet people where they are,” Kandola said.

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Kandola also said he was not surprised that the facility has to face questions from people living nearby.

“The best approach is to start with the research and say, No. 1, this saves lives, these are lives worth saving, but also that public safety is enhanced,” Kandola said.

“When you create a supervised consumption site, the alternative to that is that the rest of the city is an unsupervised consumption site.”

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