Harm reduction for community partners

Take home naloxone and harm reduction supplies

Harm reduction supplies, take home naloxone and Facility Overdose Response Boxes (F.O.R.B) are available free of charge from the BC Centre for Disease Control. If you would like to register your site to distribute supplies, contact the harm reduction team to confirm eligibility prior to completing the form.

Registering to be a harm reduction distribution site

Registering to be a take home naloxone distribution site

Facility Overdose Response Box (FORB)

Drug Checking

Northern Health provides Fentanyl test strips free of charge and supports communities to send in drug samples for drug checking. To order fentanyl test strips or find out what process your community uses to get drug samples tested, please email harmreduction@northernhealth.ca

Planning for festivals and community events

Ensuring the smooth and safe operation of an event begins with careful planning. Whether you are coordinating the event or contributing through service delivery, the following links can help to assess potential risks and establish appropriate interventions to manage them.

Health and safety

  • Public health guidelines: Major planned events: Provides guidance on the responsibilities of event organizers in addressing public health considerations and minimizing risks associated with large-scale events. It also outlines the process for securing the necessary approvals from the local health authority.
  • The manual of psychedelic support : A comprehensive guide to setting up and running compassionate care services for people having difficult drug experiences at music festivals and similar events.

Drug checking

  • The drug resource and education project: Helpful site for drug checking and harm reduction at music festivals. Provides guidance to applying for the appropriate legal exemption, as well as downloadable resources, including data collection sheets, drug checking disclaimers and more.

Creating safe spaces