February 2025 Board of Health Meeting - Overview of Substance Supports in Neighbourhoods Accessed through Police Partnerships (SSNAPP) Information Report

Meeting Date
February 2025 Board of Health Meeting
Meeting Document Type
Information Report
Overview of Substance Supports in Neighbourhoods Accessed through Police Partnerships (SSNAPP)

PREPARED BY: Substance Use Prevention And Harm Reduction

DATE: 2025-02-06

SUBJECT: Overview of Substance Supports in Neighbourhoods Accessed through Police Partnerships (SSNAPP)

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE

Windsor-Essex has been disproportionally affected by the current opioid crisis compared to other regions in Ontario. In 2017, a review of local data found the Windsor-Essex region to have the 7th highest rate of opioid users in Ontario and identified Windsor and Leamington as primary areas of concern1. Recent data has found that opioid-related morbidity, including both emergency department (ED) visits and hospitalizations resulting from opioid use, has been increasing steadily in Windsor-Essex since 20162.

The Substance Supports in Neighbourhoods Accessed through Police Partnerships (SSNAPP) is a collaborative initiative involving the Windsor Police Service (WPS), the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit (WECHU), and the City of Windsor. Funded by the Community Safety and Policing (CSP) Grant, the project was launched in April 2022 to address gaps in support and response to mental health and addictions crises in high-priority neighbourhood areas for substance use. Over the past three years, the project has focused on three primary components: engagement, education, and training.

The project aligns with regional goals of the Windsor Essex Regional Community Safety and Well-Being (WERCSWB) Plan and the Windsor-Essex Community Opioid and Substance Use Strategy (WECOSS) to improve community safety and well-being, specifically addressing substance use-related challenges, mental health crises, and stigma reduction.   

DISCUSSION

The project’s current initiatives include:

  1. Neighbourhood Safety Plans: Developed based on community consultation with residents, business owners, and service providers, these plans address specific concerns and priorities unique to each postal code area that had the highest rates of opioid-related deaths at the time of development (N9A, N8W, N8X, and N8Y). Topics include responding to mental health and substance use crises, administering naloxone, de-escalation techniques, homelessness, vandalism, and discrimination. 
    As of January 9, 2025: 
    • Total online downloads of Neighbourhood Safety Plans: 1,229
    • Total Neighbourhood Safety Plans distributed: 929
    • Feedback from surveys completed:
      • Almost 73% of respondents are confident in their understanding of when it is appropriate to call 911, 311, 211, emergency services, and non-emergency services because of the Plans.
  2. Training Workshops: Facilitated 23 training sessions for a total of 764 local service providers including training on de-escalation, addictions and mental health, motivational interviewing, and supporting individuals with complex trauma.
  3. Community Engagement Events: Supported 11 community engagement events facilitated between the Downtown Windsor Community Collaborative (DWCC) and the WECOSS.
    • Includes two overdose prevention training events 
    • Includes nine community park events in high-priority postal code areas with approximately 450 community residents in attendance. 
      • On average, 80% participants strongly agreed or agreed that they had a better understanding of community supports from attending an event.
  4. Educational Campaigns: Promoted mental health and addictions services, naloxone utilization and overdose response, and combating stigma of substance use through public education materials, including social media, transit advertisements, direct mail, the SSNAPP webpage, and an online trivia game.
  5. Nurse and Police Team: Provided support for the operations of the Windsor Police Service Nurse and Police substance use outreach team.
    • From January 1, 2024, to January 14, 2025, there were 2,432 calls where the Nurse and Police team responded which resulted in 524 referrals made to substance use/mental health and social service providers, and 771 persons diverted from the emergency department.

FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES 

As of March 31, 2025, funding for the SSNAPP initiative will conclude. However, with additional support, there is potential to expand the program through engagement, education, and training opportunities including:

  • Create additional Neighbourhood Safety Plans for other high priority areas within Windsor and Essex County, including Leamington as a high priority area. 
  • Continue engaging underserved communities, including continuing to support Windsor’s Nurse and Police Team. 
  • Offer more specialized workshops for service providers and law enforcement. 
  1. Windsor-Essex Community Opioid & Substance Strategy (WECOSS). (2025). Statistics. https://wecoss.ca/statistics
  2. WECOSS, 2025.