Radio-Canada reported last January that the service, which will be offered in the form of a mobile unit, will be rolled out over the summer and will be aimed particularly at festive circles.
The goal of this new tool in SABSA’s arsenal is to enable users to have their substances tested before use, thereby avoiding adverse effects, including fatal overdoses.
Implementation comes against the backdrop of the opioid crisis and a general deterioration in the quality of drugs in circulation, including in Quebec. The number of fatal overdoses, while still not comparable to what is happening in the west of the country, peaked last year in the capital with 40 deaths, most of which were due to opioids.
Thanks to various tools, including a spectrometer, the service must enable the identification of contaminants in the drugs tested within 15 to 30 minutes.
SABSA’s mobile unit will be similar to that offered by GRIP in Montreal. (archive photo)
Photo: Radio Canada / Sebastien Lauzon
Not ready for the FEQ
The Festival d’été de Québec (FEQ) would be the first event of the season to have the SABSA unit stationed near their locations. According to our information, however, even a month after the file was submitted, the health authorities still have not given the green light.
Given the exceptional circumstances beyond the control of SABSA Solidarity Cooperative, the fabric review service will not be used at Festival d’été de Québec, a SABSA spokesman said.
SABSA staff have kits containing naloxone, an antidote in the event of an opioid overdose. (archive photo)
Photo: Radio Canada / Felix Lebel
However, the organization states that it is ready to offer the service before the end of the festival, on July 16, provided that approval is granted by then. The leadership teams have received all the necessary training and are ready to deploy the service once all final elements are finalized. SABSA staff will continue to be deployed at FEQ sites to conduct prevention and awareness raising.
On Monday evening, the Department of Health and Social Services (MSSS) said it would make its decision on Friday. The MSSS has carefully processed the SABSA cooperative’s application since it was received and will announce its decision tomorrow.
permanent service
In addition to the FEQ, other festivals should also use the new service this summer. The Festif de Baie-Saint-Paul must, among other things, host the unit.
If the service is aimed at so-called “leisure” users as part of certain event activities, it must primarily be used by normal consumers. Because he already had access to a supervised injection center in Quebec, he still lacked the ability to have her substances screened.
In addition to the Quebec region, the unit will regularly visit Portneuf and Charlevoix.
Like supervised injection, substance testing is part of a harm reduction approach taken by public health authorities.
What is the harm reduction approach?
The harm reduction approach is to minimize the negative consequences (harms) associated with substance use, rather than attempting to eliminate the behavior itself. These are intervention programs to protect the health of drug users.
source : National Institute of Public Health of Quebec
The Montréal case
In Montreal, where the GRIP organization has been offering substance analyzes since last summer, several worrying observations were made as a result of the tests. In several cases, consumers were in possession of a different substance than the one they had purchased.
According to a GRIP assessment conducted earlier this winter, almost one in ten substances carries a risk of adverse effects, without these being necessarily serious or potentially fatal.
The opioid crisis has claimed more than 30,000 lives in Canada since 2016. Across the province, 450 Quebecers died from drug overdoses in 2021.