A sign outside the emergency room entrance at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital directing those looking for harm reduction supplies to speak to hospital staff, as a free kiosk containing those supplies was removed by Island Health this week. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Jordan Davidson

life saving supplies

Drug users slam removal of harm reduction kiosks at Island Health facilities

Sep 6, 2024 | 5:09 PM

NANAIMO — A free harm reduction and first aid vending machine located outside Nanaimo Regional General Hospital (NRGH) for nearly a year is no more, much to the dismay of those who used it.

The “Care and Connection Kiosks” were installed outside emergency room entrances at three Island Health facilities last October, but have since been removed by the health authority.

Premier David Eby called for a review of harm reduction services last month.

Dawn Roberts, a member of the Nanaimo and Area Network of Drug Users (NANDU), used the kiosk multiple times for supplies for herself and others.

“To people out there who think drugs are coming from the machine, they’re absolutely not. It’s just the supplies so that people can use safely and clean, and not use mud puddles and whatnot for water.”

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Island Health confirmed to NanaimoNewsNOW the kiosks at hospitals in Nanaimo and Campbell River were removed Wednesday, Sept. 4, while the kiosk on the south Island was removed in mid-December due to space restrictions.

The kiosks contained drug paraphernalia, including tin foil, bubble pipes, alcohol wipes and injection kits, with the goal of reducing the sharing of drug supplies which can spread disease.

Roberts felt judged and condescended at other Island primary care settings when she asked for supplies from staff, which also takes them away from assisting other patients.

She’s worried people aren’t thinking of the big picture when it comes to safe, clean supplies for addicts and said more of these kiosks are needed, not less, as “addiction is 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”

“To have to go in and give up your anonymity by conversing with somebody is hard, it’s hard to do and a lot of people won’t do it. They’ll just use the same thing over and over again and that’s very detrimental to their health and then they become a patient (at the hospital).”

A rendering of the kiosks which were deployed at hospitals in Nanaimo, Victoria and Campbell River in Oct. 2023. (Island Health)

After hearing that the kiosks had been removed, NANDU surveyed 50 of its members to discern how many Nanaimo area drug users had accessed the Care and Connection Kiosks.

NANDU coordinator Ann Livingston said 21 of their members they could readily contact on Friday said they had relied on the kiosks, while the majority of those who said no were unaware of it’s existence.

Livingston told NanaimoNewsNOW addicts sharing supplies can not only result in their death, but can also potentially lead to increased strain on the health care system.

“One case of AIDS is $1 million [in treatment costs]. In terms of an overdose, if someone gets their pipes mixed up with someone else…and if someone’s pipes smoked fentanyl and they’re a stimulant user and they use that pipe, they will go down and they will die if they’re not attended to.”

Livingston said some items in the kiosks, such as the bubble pipes, have been stolen in bulk, with thieves then selling them on the streets.

While admitting the situation was frustrating, Livingston said if more of the items were available on the street their monetary value would become non-existent.

Recovery is a long process and one which doesn’t come easy, according to Livingston, who has long campaigned for additional supervised consumption and harm reduction services.

“If anyone’s ever tried to stop smoking cigarettes, it’s going to take a number of attempts and it’s not magic… it’s a very, very high rate of death for people coming out of recovery or jail because they don’t know what’s out there.”

She said adding more barriers to drug users getting clean supplies only ensures more harm comes to addicts, as illicit street drugs continue to kill at least six people every day in B.C.

“If every fifth bottle of beer you buy is going to actually kill you dead when you drink it, would they just keep increasing the number of places to get alcohol treatment? No, they’d be doing something about the poison beer.”

A statement from the health authority said the kiosk machines operated 24/7 and were supported by “peer and addiction recovery workers during business hours.”

Originally in place to “connect with hard-to-reach populations like people who work shift work, and wouldn’t feel comfortable requesting harm reduction supplies” elsewhere, Island Health said they remain committed to actively supporting people in their recovery journey.

Of the 18,253 dispenses on the three machines, as of Aug. 28, 8,580 (47 per cent) were in Nanaimo, according to Island Health.

– with files from Alex Rawnsley and Ian Holmes

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