Surge in homelessness and public drug use a result of Sask. government policy: Prairie Harm Reduction
CTV
Saskatoon’s Prairie Harm Reduction (PHR) says a staff member arrived to work on Thursday morning to find someone at its doorstep, unresponsive from a suspected drug overdose.
Saskatoon’s Prairie Harm Reduction (PHR) says a staff member arrived to work on Thursday morning to find someone at its doorstep, unresponsive from a suspected drug overdose.
“The heartbreak is indescribable, especially knowing this could have been prevented if our doors had been open and our paramedics had been onsite,” said Kayla DeMong, executive director of PHR, which provides support services to drug users and those struggling with homelessness, and runs Saskatchewan’s first safe consumption site.
DeMong says her organization often finds itself at the centre of political debate, struggling under the constant threat of closure, as those looking to explain the surge in homelessness, public drug use and overdoses find PHR to be an easy scapegoat.
If you think you’re seeing more homelessness and public drug use than ever — you are. But DeMong says these conditions are a consequence of public policy, including changes to Saskatchewan’s social assistance benefits that made it harder for recipients to get their rent paid, and a crumbling, underfunded health care system.
“I think the hardest thing is that, especially around election time, decisions are made, and promises are made just for votes. They’re not actually made in the best interest of everyone in the community,” DeMong told CTV News on Monday.
Now, as the politically conservative-leaning parties — in Saskatchewan and across the country — return to the idea of abstinence, or recovery-based addiction care, DeMong says it’s the province’s most vulnerable, many of whom are residential school survivors, who will suffer the most under the new regime.
“They’re selling a picture and promises to people who see, you know, promises of treatment and think, ‘OK, that’ll solve it all’ … there is no plan for the people living on our streets, and it’s become a very easy target for PHR to be blamed for all of it,” she said.
