Harm Reduction

You're right; mentioning the pharmacy could add relevant context, given the article's focus on diverted opioids and regulatory oversight. Here's an updated version: **Alt Text:** "Two police cars parked in front of a pharmacy on a busy street in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, with people gathered near storefronts and sidewalks lined with personal belongings, reflecting the visible impacts of the opioid crisis."
Policy

How Diverted Opioids Are Flooding British Columbia’s Streets

British Columbia’s opioid crisis has entered a new and complex phase, with recent investigations revealing that a significant portion of prescribed opioids intended for ...
Three individuals seated outdoors in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, one smoking a substance, illustrating the public health and safety challenges linked to smokable drug use.
Policy

Rising Fires, Policy Clashes, and the Spread of Smokable Drugs

Smokable drug use is reshaping British Columbia’s overdose crisis, creating new risks for public safety and emergency response. As health officials push to expand ...
Individuals demonstrate drug-checking technology using an FTIR spectrometer at a harm reduction facility, with advocates and officials observing the process.
Addiction

How Drug Checking is Reducing Overdose Deaths in BC

Drug checking services are a frontline defence against fatal overdoses in British Columbia. With Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside at the epicentre of the crisis, these ...
Scientist wearing gloves and a face mask examines a cannabis plant in a controlled cultivation environment, highlighting advancements in Canada's legal cannabis industry.
Policy

Canada’s Cannabis Industry Six Years After Legalization

Six years after legalization, Canada’s cannabis market faces high taxes, strict regulations, and ongoing competition from the illicit market. In 2018, Canada became the ...
Two individuals on a Vancouver sidewalk, one crouching to assist the other who is lying down near a makeshift shelter of cardboard, with a city bus and pedestrians visible in the background.
Policy

Can Alberta’s Recovery Model Solve BC’s Opioid Crisis?

British Columbia, once a trailblazer in harm reduction and addressing the opioid crisis, faces unrelenting challenges in reducing overdose deaths and mitigating urban disorder. ...
An overhead view of a supervised drug consumption site in an urban setting, featuring a yellow tent labeled 'OPS - Overdose Prevention Society,' surrounded by individuals engaging with staff and accessing services, against a backdrop of graffiti-covered walls.
Addiction

British Columbia Urged to Improve Data on Supervised Consumption Sites

Recent developments in Ontario have reignited the conversation around supervised consumption sites, compelling British Columbia to reassess its approach. While Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside is ...
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau sits in discussion with a group of officials in a formal meeting room, flanked by Canadian flags and a wooden interior.
Policy

How Justin Trudeau Shaped Canada’s Drug Policy

Justin Trudeau’s tenure as Canada’s Prime Minister is often defined by progressive policies, including a bold approach to drug regulation. From the landmark legalization ...
A blurred figure walking through a brightly lit classroom or lecture hall filled with empty white chairs, with a stack of books and papers placed on one chair in the foreground, symbolizing education, learning, or community programs.
Addiction

Targeted Interventions to Reduce Youth Substance Use Disorders

Substance use among Canada’s youth has reached alarming levels, demanding immediate and coordinated action. In 2023, nearly 20% of young Canadians reported experimenting with ...
A neatly arranged set of naloxone kits, including vials, syringes, and nasal sprays, placed on a clean surface. Each kit features clear labeling and step-by-step usage instructions designed for quick emergency response during an opioid overdose.
Addiction

How Naloxone Works and Why It’s Essential for Canada’s Opioid Crisis

Canada’s opioid crisis has escalated to a public health emergency over the past decade, with overdose deaths reaching alarming levels. In the past eight ...
Addiction

Are Overdose Prevention Sites Making a Difference in British Columbia?

In 2016, British Columbia faced an unprecedented public health emergency. The opioid crisis, driven by an increasingly toxic drug supply, was claiming lives at ...
People in distress standing alongside East Hastings Street in Downtown Eastside Vancouver
Community

The Downtown Eastside Phenomenon Where a Neighbourhood Becomes a Metaphor

Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside has long symbolized the complexities of urban inequality, its streets reflecting a deep convergence of poverty, addiction, and systemic neglect. Once ...
Addiction

Downtown Eastside’s Falling Overdose Rates Challenge What We Think We Know

The toxic drug crisis in British Columbia’s Downtown Eastside—a neighbourhood at the epicentre of overdose fatalities—has presented an unexpected, albeit cautious, glimmer of hope. ...
Image of several prescription bottles standing on the table
Healthcare

Hydromorphone’s Role in BC Evolves Beyond Its Intended Purpose

British Columbia’s response to its deadly overdose epidemic has been nothing short of revolutionary. Programs like MySafe in Downtown Eastside and tablet injectable opioid ...
A picture of doctor holding hand of a teenage patient in hospital environment
Addiction

Harm Reduction Barriers Facing Youth in British Columbia

Harm reduction in British Columbia has led the charge against substance-related harm. Yet, the province’s youth—some of the most vulnerable among those who use ...
Image of Vancouver Police Department standing in the middle of the street with people behind it
Order

Withdrawal of Police Support Raises Questions About BC’s Decriminalization

Police associations are stepping back from supporting BC’s decriminalization pilot, citing public safety concerns and increasing disorder in communities. The withdrawal of backing from ...
Picture of a busy Vancouver Downtown Eastside street next to safe drug use site
Addiction

New Study Challenges the Effectiveness of Harm Reduction in British Columbia

Nearly a quarter of participants in BC’s safer supply program are diverting prescribed opioids, according to a recent Vancouver-based study. The findings also reveal ...
Image capturing a person laying on the sidewalk of Vancouver Downtown Eastside next to a closed business
Addiction

Harm Reduction Paradox of Downtown Eastside Vancouver

Nestled within Vancouver’s glittering skyline is the Downtown Eastside, a neighbourhood teetering between compassion and catastrophe, where harm reduction policies have sparked as much ...
Image of a person being arrested and wearing handcuffs
Policy

British Columbia’s Shift on Drug Policy Fuels Uncertainty

In British Columbia, a province once considered a leader in progressive drug policy, a new pivot away from harm reduction has reignited debates about ...
Picture of a bottle of prescription medication Methadone laying on a sidewalk
Addiction

Fentanyl Crisis Sparks Battle Over Opioid Treatment in BC

As the opioid crisis deepens across British Columbia, the province has made strides in expanding access to treatments like methadone and buprenorphine/naloxone for those ...
Image of acupuncture needles inserted in patient skin in an attempt to subdue the withdrawal effects of drug addiction
Addiction

The Potential of Acupuncture in Treating Addiction

With Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside at the heart of Canada’s opioid and addiction crisis, the neighbourhood has long been an epicentre of innovative, community-based treatment ...
The image captures a grieving father over loss of his daughter to drug overdose caused by safe supply drugs
Addiction

Is Safer Supply a Form of Harm Reduction or a Cause of Addiction?

The notion of safer supply, once seen as a beacon of hope in Canada’s battle against the opioid crisis, is now sparking widespread debate. ...
EMS and VPD Police Officers captured administering help to an overdose victim on the streets of Downtown Eastside Vancouver
Policy

The Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act and Drug Law Enforcement

Canada’s opioid crisis has rapidly escalated into one of the country’s most urgent public health emergencies. Since 2016, over 44,000 Canadians have died from ...
Pictured are numerous drug users on the sidewalks of East Hastings Street Vancouver, British Columbia
Addiction

Canada’s Fight Against Opioid Overdose Sees Hope in 2024 Decline

Despite a slight decline in unregulated drug deaths in 2024, the opioid crisis continues to take a devastating toll on communities across British Columbia ...
The image captures results of MRI testing of a patient who underwent nonfatal opioid overdose
Healthcare

Canadian Healthcare Gaps for Survivors of Non-Fatal Overdoses

For years, Canada has grappled with a devastating overdose crisis, with thousands of people succumbing to the lethal effects of toxic drugs, particularly fentanyl. ...
Pictured is pulse oximetry device measuring pulse and other vital metrics
Addiction

Pulse Oximetry as a Potential Tool to Reduce Overdose Deaths in British Columbia

Continuous pulse oximetry, a technology traditionally used in acute care settings, is showing potential as an innovative method to decrease overdose fatalities amid British ...
A picture of hands holding syringes and other drug paraphernalia distributed as part of harm reduction efforts in British Columbia
Addiction

The Harm Reduction Experiment Hits a Wall in British Columbia

The nation stands at a crossroads as escalating overdose deaths and public disorder expose the shortcomings of progressive drug policies. What was once considered ...
Police containing a crowd of people in Downtown Vancouver amidst the growing concern of local citizens with their community's safety.
Policy

British Columbians Demand New Approaches to Crime, Addiction, and Public Safety

As the opioid crisis and rising crime continue to shape public discourse, a new province-wide survey conducted by Research Co. has revealed that British ...