BACKGROUND
Overview
- SafePoint officially opened on Wednesday, April 26th, 2023, serving clients 7 days per week between the hours of 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. daily.
- In order to ensure transparency related to SafePoint operations, the Board of Health will be provided with regular updates.
Application Status
- In July of 2023, Health Canada authorized the WECHU’s exemption request to operate SafePoint as a Consumption and Treatment Services (CTS) site.
- The approval from Health Canada was shared with the Ontario Ministry of Health to complete the provincial application to operate a fully funded CTS site.
- The Ministry of Health application for CTS funding continues to remain under review. An announcement was made that a review of the safety components of all operating sites is underway and that until such time that this is completed, all pending applications for funding will be placed on hold.
CURRENT INITIATIVES
Operational Data
It has been five months since SafePoint opened on April 26th and there have been a total of 601 client visits and 149 unique clients to date, with no overdoses reported on-site to date. Additional details about the services provided at SafePoint during the month of September are presented in Tables 1-3.
|
Total Unique Clients: 30 |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Demographic |
Number of Unique Clients |
|
|
Age |
Under 25 |
1 |
|
|
25-64 |
28 |
|
|
Unknown |
1 |
|
Gender |
Man |
20 |
|
|
Woman |
10 |
|
Race |
White |
22 |
|
|
Indigenous |
1 |
|
|
Black, African, or Caribbean |
2 |
| Arabic | 1 | |
| South Asian | 1 | |
| Declined to answer | 2 | |
| Race not listed | 1 | |
|
Total Number of Client Visits: 183 |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Indicator |
Number of Visits |
|
|
Visit by Time of Day |
10:00 – 11:59 a.m. |
54 |
|
|
12:00 – 2:59 p.m. |
72 |
|
|
3:00 – 6:00 p.m. |
57 |
|
Type of Visit |
Consumption |
95 |
| Other | 88 | |
|
Consumption Visits Reported |
Crystal methamphetamine |
38 |
| Morphine | 4 | |
|
|
Dilaudid |
3 |
| Fentanyl | 45 | |
| Ritalin | 1 | |
| Speedball Crystal/Fentanyl | 4 | |
|
Consumption Visits by Method of Consumption |
Injection |
96 |
|
Total Number of Client Visits: 183 |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Indicator |
Number of Times Service Offered |
||
|
Drug Checking |
On-site fentanyl drug checking |
2 |
|
|
Basic Care |
First aid |
15 |
|
| Wound/abscess | 28 | ||
| Foot care | 7 | ||
|
Wraparound Services |
|
On-site |
Referral |
|
|
Addictions treatment |
- |
4 |
|
|
Mental health |
- |
- |
|
|
Primary care |
15 |
10 |
| Social services | 126 | 3 | |
Client Experience Narrative
Beyond the number of client visits recorded in the month of September, SafePoint continues to demonstrate that the services being offered are having a positive impact on clients, as highlighted through the following client experience narrative:
Anonymous Client
The Mobile Medical Support (MMS) Team visited SafePoint to complete dental screenings to identify clients who may need oral health services. Through this outreach, the Dental Hygienist identified that a client required dental services but those services were not covered. The Dental Hygienist worked with the client to complete an application for funding to cover the cost of the procedure and the client was later able to have their tooth extracted.
Community Engagement
- On September 21st, 2023, SafePoint staff walked to the Housing and Homelessness Help Hub (H4), the Transitional Stability Centre, and the Downtown Mission of Windsor for outreach. Staff distributed business cards and resources during the interactions held and received feedback about SafePoint from potential clients to help improve future operations.
FUTURE PLANS
SafePoint is preparing to launch a business engagement strategy, which will involve regular outreach with area businesses to address any questions or concerns about the site. SafePoint will also be partnering with the Downtown Windsor Business Improvement Association (DWBIA) to share information and resources with their membership about the supports available to businesses as SafePoint operates.