Supervised injection services are spaces where people can inject illegal drugs under the supervision of trained health staff and without fear of arrest.
Research shows that these services reduce public drug use and risky injection practices. They also provide a pathway to help people who use drugs to access health care and social services that they need.
Supervised injection services were introduced to Toronto in 2017, as an important part of Canada’s response to the ongoing opioid crisis.
How successful are Toronto’s supervised-injection facilities in preventing overdoses?
To find out, we are looking at:
- Was the introduction of supervised injection or overdose prevention services associated with decreased opioid overdose rates in Ontario? We will examine opioid-related deaths, emergency department visits for opioid-related overdoses, hospital admissions and ambulance calls in neighbourhoods where supervised injection services are available, and in neighbourhoods nearby.
- Whether Toronto’s supervised injection sites and overdose-prevention sites had similar effects and benefits.
Our results will provide a strong evidence base to inform policy discussions about supervised injection services in Ontario and around the world.
