Harm-reduction group using new tool hoping to prevent more fatal overdoses

After seeing a steady rise in overdose deaths in St. Thomas, Ont., advocates have been pushing for a supervised consumption site. But in the meantime, one agency is trying to find creative ways to help prevent more people from dying at the hands of fentanyl.

The Nameless, a grassroots agency, plans to use coloured lights as a way to warn drug users if there is a bad batch of fentanyl going around.

“And if it saves even one person having an overdose, it's a win,” said Brian Elliott, executive director of Inn Out of the Cold, a shelter in St. Thomas.

The volunteer-run group assists over 100 people a week through its outreach programs that serve people experiencing homelessness, mental health issues and substance abuse.

“Folks will let us know that there's a bad batch, we take that information and report it to our health unit,” said Stephanie Miller-Olczak, board administrator of The Nameless, a community funded, harm reduction charity.

“The health unit requires three poisoning reports before they issue a notice. We don’t. We can let the community know right away,” she said.

Even though the Southwestern Public Health Unit will issue overdose warnings to the public through releases, not everyone sees the alerts.

The idea of using lights as an indicator came to Miller-Olczak after buying a few lights from a dollar store for another reason.

“I was playing around with the colours and I thought, ‘What if I stuck a label on it?’ And if there's a bad batch of blue fentanyl we can turn the colour blue and put it in the window,” she explained.

Amanda Zielinski is the board chair of the harm reduction agency. She said they are hoping to hand the lights out to other members of the community, to ensure the message is seen.

“We want to be able to share when people report that there's a bad batch and from there I can send an email saying there's a bad batch of blue, we are lighting up blue tonight. And then our community partner can do the same,” she said.

“I think it's a great idea. Any time community partners can work together to educate our clients we’re much better off,” Elliott added.

“Over the last couple of years, we’ve seen an increase in drug use in St. Thomas. It went from oxycodone to hydromorphone, and now we’re doing fentanyl” said Bobby Wiens, with Standing Together Addicts Share Hope (STASH), a local group trying to assist addicts struggling to fight against the stigma.

He added, “A lot of people think drug addicts are all thieves, up to no good, homeless, have mental health issues, which a lot do but there are people who actually hold down jobs and are in the community.”

Volunteers recommend picking up naloxone kits from your local pharmacy which can help prevent fatal overdoses.