You would think that if there’s one person in the provincial government that might be the most sympathetic to people suffering from the ravages of substance addiction, it’s Doug Ford. He watched it happen to his little brother, live and in front of the media glare of the biggest city in the county, not to mention a great many cameras from abroad.
And yet, Doug Ford’s government announced Tuesday that they are initiating changes that will result in the closure of several safe consumption sites, including the one at Guelph Community Health Centre. Ford understands what it’s like to deal with a family member addicted to substances, so why does he seem not to care?
It’s been clear since Ford became premier that he’s wanted to vanquish safe consumption sites in Ontario, it’s been one of his peccadilloes like the size of Toronto city council, and like a lot of things that Ford has done I wonder if he’s fully thought out the consequences.
What consequences? To put this simply Ford, Sylvia Jones, and the other members of the Ontario government killed people on Tuesday, they just don’t know who yet.
In so much as you might be reading this and find the idea of safe consumption sites distasteful, the data shows that they work. If the goal of an SCS is to stop overdoses and/or drug poisoning deaths, then they are an unparalleled success because there have been no fatalities at a SCS anywhere across Canada. Also, out of 361,000 unique individuals helped, more than 71 per cent have been referred to addictions or other healthcare treatment.
As for the Ontario government’s justification that they are reacting to a rise in crime around safe consumption sites, they didn’t provide that data, and I couldn’t find it on my own either. The whole assumption seems built around one high-profile shooting last July in Toronto’s Leslieville neighbourhood where a SCS operates out of the South Riverdale Community Health Centre.
In fact, two different independent reviews initiated by the province said that not only should the SCS at South Riverdale stay open, but that the government should expand harm reduction resources, including safe consumption sites. Yes, there were recommendations about strengthening security and improving community relations, but nothing about closures.
Now, in lieu of something that works, the Government of Ontario has pulled a new bureaucracy out of their hat. The Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment Hubs, or HART Hubs, which have a cute name that’s meant to invoke a caring attitude, but you’ll forgive me if I remain skeptical about whether or not Ford et al have considered all the angles. This is the government that created the Ontario Line, and then decided to move one of the Ontarios at the end of the line mid-construction.
It's also worth pointing out, as we did on this week’s episode of Open Sources Guelph, that the government with a cabinet position in charge of red tape reduction is adding another layer of red tape. A SCS that already had to jump through government hoops to get approval in the first place must now jump through new hoops to offer an entirely different service. This is the kind of governance that a smart businessman like Ford is supposed to despise the most.
And part of the problem with tackling the addictions and mental health crisis has been that constant bureaucratic churn. Both upper levels of government have been constantly rolling out new programs and funding streams, which have forced local agencies and non-profits to bend and transform to meet whatever new guidelines are required. It would be refreshing if these agencies might be able to focus on the problem at hand instead of the paperwork.
Perhaps that’s why there’s still so many people on the street using substances, the ones that our mayor has been so obsessively focused on getting out of our sight. Now that these people can no longer depend on continued access to a healthcare service downtown, it will make it easier to move them to only pre-approved areas of the city. Good thing there’s a meeting about a certain bylaw next week on this very topic.
I’m reminded of the COVID-19 testing site, which was moved to a vacant space in a commercial plaza on Southgate Road when the Victoria Road Recreation Centre re-opened during the pandemic. While it’s understandable that space is at a premium, what kind of message did it send to people in this community without a car to have to transfer between three buses just to get access to healthcare during a public health crisis.
I wonder, will it make Mayor Guthrie happy if we move the CTS to the edge of town?
I’m sure that would make some people happy, like the ones pressuring city hall to get people who use substances out of the downtown so that those other safe consumption sites have an easier time of it. For what is a bar but a safe consumption site? What is a cannabis store but a proprietor of a safe supply?
You see, it’s not drugs we don’t like, it’s the desperation, and getting rid of all safe consumption sites is not going to get rid of the desperation. Or a poisonous drug supply. Or actual criminals who prey on people and their desperation. Instead, it will mean more people using alone. More people using drugs that contain other things that might kill them. More pressure on the local hospital as the first and last place that someone in crisis can go for help.
On Wednesday, Ford told the press that he “listened to the people in the neighbourhoods” and decided to reject the work of hundreds of public health professionals who have a different, first-hand appraisal of the situation. Why? Because Ford thinks that all this a choice and a moral failing of individuals instead of the fault of a system that makes chemicals the only escape from homelessness, anxiety and despair.
I understand why Doug Ford doesn’t understand why people use drugs, so why can’t he understand why some people would want to? It’s another example of the stunning lack of imagination on the part of the man in charge of the province, but this time, it’s going to cost lives.
