Addictions medicine specialist Dr. Kelsey Roden spoke with People First Radio at a pop up overdose prevention site near Royal Jubilee Hospital in Victoria.
“The toxic drug supply has gotten so toxic with so many additives and contaminants and high potency fentanyl, that sometimes the medications we have available in the hospital are just not enough,” she said.
The site isn’t sanctioned by the health authority. Roden is with a group called Doctors For Safer Drug Policy, who have been calling for overdose prevention sites to be opened at hospitals on Vancouver Island.
“Those of us working on the front lines want these sites to happen at the hospital,” she said. “I agree that withdrawal needs to be managed. Absolutely, but the reality is that sometimes the medications that we have available are not enough, and therefore we just need other options.”
Roden says people looking for treatment options to stop substance use face excessive wait times.
“That person comes to me on the day saying ‘I’m desperate. I need help now.’ And I say, ‘I would love to help you. Let’s do those referrals,’ and they’re waiting now for like four to six months to get in.”
“Often for people, they’ve missed that window of opportunity, of motivation…it’s really heartbreaking because there are definitely cases where people die just while they’re waiting for that treatment bed. So we need a system that can respond faster to people in the moment when they come into me.”
Roden says helping someone move past challenges with substance use goes beyond treatment beds.
“ It’s not just about treatment beds, it’s also about how do we support someone after treatment to maintain their goals. How do we get someone into longer term housing plans after treatment so they’re not back to the streets or back to their supportive housing building where they’re around their dealers and all their old friends, and all the people who are still using,” she said.
“If we could prescribe housing, if we could prescribe food security, if we could prescribe all these things, then, you know, for many people that’s actually what’s at the root of the problem for them and why they’re using substances…for many people, recovery actually looks like just having their basic needs met.”
Listen to the full interview, recorded Sunday, April 13, 2025.
Apple Podcasts
Google Podcasts
Spotify