Doctors for Safer Drug Policy and their supporters arrived at North Island Hospital in Comox on Monday morning with hopes of setting up an Overdose Prevention Site readily available for inpatients to utilize. Photo: Heather Watson / CHLY 101.7 FM

On Monday, January 20th Doctors for Safer Drug Policy, a group of addictions medicine physicians set up an unsanctioned Overdose Prevention Site at North Island Hospital Comox Valley.

Overdose Prevention Sites (OPS) are safe spaces where staff trained in overdose prevention and response are able to supervise people using illicit drugs, connect them to care, refer them to treatment, and provide harm reduction supplies such as clean needles. By providing safe and sanitary materials, OPSs also reduce costs on the healthcare system by reducing cases of bloodborne diseases such as HIV and hepatitis C. This OPS being “unsanctioned” means it was not approved by the Vancouver Island Health Authority.

Doctors for Safer Drug Policy and their supporters arrived at North Island Hospital in Comox on Monday morning with hopes of setting up an Overdose Prevention Site readily available for inpatients to utilize. One participating physician, Dr. Eva Hemmerich, spoke to the media Monday morning from the boulevard just off hospital property.

“We plan to be here Monday through Friday, 10 to 6. And to be a functioning OPS, where we are taking turns for shifts, and people can come in and use it for smoking or IV injection,” she said.

“So we're hoping that inpatients will be able to use it, rather than going across the bushes or in the bathroom unsupervised and risk overdose, that they will come here with the support and [we will] be able to help them access care and treatment, potentially referrals and such,” Dr. Hemmerich explained. “And I deal with prescribing Opioid Agonist Therapy, which is an opioid replacement, so connecting them with care and giving them hope and making them feel cared for.”

Dr. Hemmerich and her fellow physicians were acting in response to halted plans for sanctioned Overdose Prevention Sites that were set to be opened in three Island Health hospitals last year.

An article posted to Filter Magazine in November 2024 revealed internal documents from Vancouver Island Health Authority that indicate while progress was made between September 2023 and April 2024, all work was paused in April due to “government direction.” This happened at the same time the province moved to recriminalize the use of drugs in public places.

In an emailed statement, Island Health said it was “committed to ensuring … patients who use substances receive equitable and accessible care” and said regional hospitals already had specialized addictions experts who “develop unique and tailored care plans that meet the needs of patients.” And went on to state that “operating an unapproved clinical service or demonstration on Island Health property cannot be supported. This position is not meant to dissuade advocacy but rather to ensure that all services provided on Island Health property adhere to regulatory, safety, and clinical standards.”

On Monday morning when Doctors for Safer Drug Policy arrived at North Island Hospital in Comox to set up their unsanctioned OPS, the normally open grassy area within the hospital plaza was taped off with two Island Health Protection Services vehicles parked in the middle.

The group was informed that they would not be allowed to set up on hospital grounds, as no unapproved clinical service or demonstration could be supported, and were redirected to the sidewalk where they would be outside Island Health jurisdiction.

RCMP were also present, and checked in with Dr. Hemmerich to ensure all drug use would remain within the tent of the OPS, away from the public.

“This is how overdose prevention site started in Vancouver, Insight,” she said. “It was unsanctioned, but [they] realized quickly how it was saving lives and giving people a place to turn to to get care. And so we don't feel too badly about it, and we found a great spot. Look at it!”

The doctors, peer support workers, and community members who gathered in support had set up their OPS tent on the sidewalk boulevard, just in front of the taped-off lawn of the hospital. Many were standing facing the road with signs encouraging empathy over stigma, as drivers honked on their way by.

Among the small crowd were people with lived experience surviving drug addictions, some of whom now work as peer support staff at The Village, an addictions clinic that Dr. Eva Hemmerich runs in Courtenay.

Taija McLuckie gave the media a tour of the OPS tent, and shared her perspective.

“It's just, it's really unfortunate. The narrative that we allow on TV, and what we don't share. It's heartbreaking. There's a lot of negative press. And it was just, it'd be really great to see someone like Eva … there's so much good that they do. I mean my boyfriend would be dead if it wasn't for her, and he's a great dad and has a 13 year old son … it's just life changing,” she said.

Tim Roth, the father of two survivors, shared the hope his children’s recovery has brought.

“Both my boys have been clean for over two years and both of them are getting married this year. They didn't even- the first thing they did once they got sober was find girlfriends and then wives. It's great,” he said.

One of his sons, Callum Roth, now works at the clinic and shared how proud he is to support the local community, and see people make it off the streets and off the drugs.

“It's been beautiful in the last, almost, it's been two years since I started working at the addictions clinic. I've seen just shy of 50 people come off the Connect parking lot, and they're sober and fighting for their life. Some of those people are here in this crowd today. Many of them have already taken one year cakes, which is like a milestone that we celebrate, which is a big one for us,” Roth said.

“We got a whole lot of them coming up on two years. We got a lot of people collecting time and fighting for their lives and not many people get to hear about the people who are coming out of the homeless shelters and finding their lives getting married and becoming members of this community,” he said. “And what we're all learning is that after we come out of this fire, we need to grab a good jug of water and go back to pull someone else out.

“And that's kind of the solution,” Roth said, “one fentanyl addict helping another fentanyl addict. Because that seems to be the recipe that's working really well today.”

The doctors who volunteered at the unsanctioned OPS in Comox last week gathered from all over the island, from Victoria to Campbell River, organizing on their own time and at their own expense to provide care that they believe should be integrated into hospitals. Hemmerich said that in doing so, they are putting their careers at risk.

“ It's a real challenge. Actually, we're looking at potentially one of the physicians [is] likely going to get fired for this involvement, which is unbelievable, horrible really, that Island Health feels [the need] to silence in a way,” Hemmerich said. “But we feel so passionate. This is saving lives. It's saving costs, saving lives, and it goes above that. It's our code of ethics and Hippocrates’ Oath, what we swear by is to do no harm but to help people.”

Funding Note: This story was produced with funding support from the Local Journalism Initiative, administered by the Community Radio Fund of Canada. Reporting done in the Comox Valley is done in partnership with CVOX.