PDS In Action
Please scroll below to see more information on our ongoing and past PDS Projects! Or use the quick links to see more about a specific project or page:
2005
The Beginning
The Four Counties Needle Exchange Coalition, which had been in operation since 1997, reported an increase in the number and severity of complaints of found needles on both public and private properties. The Health Hazards program staff agreed to facilitate consultations with representatives from: the City and County of Peterborough, municipal and provincial police forces, the Four Counties Needle Exchange Coalition, Emergency Medical Services, and the Peterborough County-City Health Unit, to develop a community-wide protocol for the referral, safe handling, and disposal of found used-needles and/or sharps.
2008
The 4 Counties Harm Reduction Coalition (4CHRC)
In 2008, 4CHRC was established to promote the health, safety, and dignity of individuals and communities affected by the continuum of drug and/or alcohol use in Haliburton, Peterborough, and Northumberland Counties and in the City of Kawartha Lakes.
2009
PDS is Established
The Peterborough Drug Strategy (PDS) was launched in 2009 by four partnering organizations: Peterborough Public Health, PARN—Your Community AIDS Resource Network, Four Counties Addiction Service Team, and Peterborough Police Service. These Pillar organizations were united in their view that collaboration around how addiction is addressed in our community is crucial to supporting the needs of individuals who use substances, as well as their families and support people. PDS grew to include partnering agencies working within their mandates to support these efforts. ​ A drug strategy as an approach allows us to create a made-in-Peterborough strategy based on our community’s needs in order to reduce the harms associated with substance use on individuals, families, and communities. ​ The Peterborough Drug Strategy builds on existing expertise and personal experiences in Peterborough while also incorporating best practices, research, and lessons learned from other cities in Canada and internationally. The strategy includes representation from all groups and addresses both legal and illegal drugs. The drug strategy currently aims to raise awareness, reduce stigma, and engage the community while moving ahead with select recommendations for action and mobilizing change.​
2013 - 2015
Youth Projects
PDS successfully implemented several community-based projects designed to address substance use among youth.
2015
A Question of Care (QoC) is Established
QoC continues today as a local capacity-building initiative focused on building and strengthening skills, knowledge, and awareness to address the intersections between trauma, stigma, substance use, and mental illness by creating space for mutual learning, respectful dialogue, and fostering collaboration for helping professionals and community members.
2016 - 2017
Emergency Department Naloxone Access Project
The Peterborough Police Service, PDS, and other supporting organizations received funding from the Proceeds of Crime Front-Line Policing program to work with the Peterborough Regional Health Centre (PRHC) to implement a naloxone distribution kit program through the hospital’s emergency department. The goal of this project was to arm individuals who are at risk of overdose and their families with a life-saving harm reduction tool. Through this partnership, the emergency department staff received training to distribute take-home naloxone kits to emergency room patients at risk of an opioid overdose. Project Background (2016): In recent years, accidental deaths due to opioid overdoses and poisonings have steadily increased. Opioid overdose is the 3rd leading cause of unintentional death in Ontario, and opioid-related deaths more than double the rate of fatalities resulting from traffic collisions. Naloxone is used to reverse the effects of an opioid overdose. Opioids (such as morphine, heroin, methadone, oxycodone, and fentanyl) can slow or halt breathing, resulting in a loss of consciousness. Administering naloxone can help to temporarily restore normal breathing, preventing brain damage or even death. Research shows that with minimal training, people with no medical background can recognize and treat an overdose with naloxone as successfully as a healthcare provider. Additionally, individuals are empowered by the ability to save lives, and naloxone distribution programs help reduce stigma towards people who use drugs. Naloxone does not replace the need for emergency medical care but can help prevent deaths and reduce irreversible, long-term complications associated with opioid overdose. Take-Home Naloxone Distribution Programs are an evidence-based approach with positive benefits and are sought after by our communities. In order to effectively treat opioid addiction, it is necessary to ensure that the individuals who use opioids are alive to receive treatment.
* Did you know that you can acquire a free naloxone kit? If you, someone you know, or your workplace needs a free naloxone kit, you can find one near you.
2017 - 2018
Consumer Advisory Panel
Over the course of a one-year pilot project, we established the panel, which offered consulting services to PDS member organizations. The PDS Panel was an opportunity for people with lived experience related to substance use to use their experiences to help inform local programs, policies and initiatives. It was also an opportunity for organizations to get feedback on their activities and adapt them to better meet the needs of people with lived experience of substance use. This project was generously funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation, an agency of the Government of Ontario.
​* The panel was later re-launched from 2022 - 2024. Learn more and view resources here.
Peterborough Regional Overdose Preparedness Project (PROP)
The Peterborough Police Service with PDS and other supporting organizations received funding in July 2017 from Proceeds of Crime Front-Line Policing program to support the harm reduction work already happening in our community. From September 2017 to March 2018, PDS undertook a number of project components to meet identified harm reduction needs in our community. These activities included: - Supporting local pharmacists to distribute naloxone in their pharmacies. - A local training schedule of opioid training for employees at risk of needing to respond to an onsite overdose at work. (Training for service providers and specialized training for establishments that serve alcohol. The training model created through this grant will continue to offer training beyond the end of the funding timeframe.) - Development of informational resources that respond to community requests, including; Information Sheets, A policy document to help agencies develop a first-aid response policy to opioid overdoses & Access to local online information about opioids.
*See our Resource Page for all published materials and videos about this project.
2018 - 2020
Peterborough Community Cannabis Project
Beginning in 2018 until March 2020, PDS supported helping professionals and members of the public in Peterborough City and County with evidence-based information and supports as we transitioned to legal cannabis for non-medical use. In 2019, PDS initiated a research and data collection process to help address the lack of locally relevant data sources pertaining to non-medical cannabis use in the City of Peterborough. Through a phone survey and focus groups, adult (18+) residents were asked about their views, knowledge, and consumption of cannabis.
*See our Resource Page for all published materials and videos about this project.
2020 - 2023
Housing Unit Takeover (HUTs) Project
The Housing Unit Takeover (HUTs) Project focused on research, education, and the creation of a manual intended to help collate existing tools and resources as well as provide some Peterborough Kawartha-specific context for use by PDS members, regional partners, and organizations.
2020 - 2024
Mobile Support Overdose Resource Team (MSORT)
The Mobile Support Overdose Resource Team (MSORT) was a collaborative pilot project serving people in Peterborough City and County with the intent to reduce overdoses and minimize the risk of harms related to overdose and substance use, especially opioids. The project was designed to enhance our community’s response to the opioid/drug poisoning/overdose crisis, helping to fill gaps and working alongside the Consumption and Treatment Services Site (CTS) in Peterborough. PDS played a supportive role with knowledge translation and evaluation of the project.
2022 - 2023
PDS Housing Report
PDS conducted a housing research project between September 2022 and April 2023. PDS is a community-based organization focused on reducing the harms of substance use, and it is well known that the drug poisoning epidemic intersects with the housing and homelessness crisis and the mental health crisis – you cannot really talk about one without the other. The goal of this report was to: - Clarify the role of the different levels of government in the housing and homelessness crisis; - Identify creativity and innovation in the housing and homelessness response in four mid-sized cities in Ontario (Wellington County, The Region of Waterloo, The City of Greater Sudbury, and The City of Kingston). This report provides an accountability framework for federal, provincial, and municipal governments and presents four case studies on how communities are addressing the issue in productive ways.
*See our Resource Page for all published materials and videos about this project.
2022 - 2024
PDS Lived Experience Advisory Panel
The panel presented a platform where 12 people with diverse lived experiences of substance use (PWLE) were paid to leverage their experiences to help shape local programs, policies, and initiatives. The panel offered organizations an invaluable opportunity to receive feedback on their activities and make necessary adaptations to more effectively serve to the needs of individuals who have navigated experiences with substance use.
2024
The Nogojiwanong-Peterborough Community Symposium on Housing and Homelessness
Reaching Home: Canada’s Homelessness Strategy (United Way, Peterborough) supported PDS and the Research for Social Change Lab (RSCL) in putting on a symposium on housing and homelessness in Peterborough in February 2024.
2024 - Present
Planet Youth Nogojiwanong brought to you by the Peterborough Youth Substance Use Prevention (PYSUP) Initiative
Peterborough Drug Strategy is fortunate enough to be co-coordinating the PYSUP Initiative. Peterborough is joining communities across Canada to work towards youth substance use prevention using the Icelandic Prevention Model (IPM). With Planet Youth's mentorship, we will be implementing this long-term, community-driven approach to ensure youth are immersed in healthy, supportive social environments and learn to adopt healthy behaviours. Our goal is to work together to improve the social environment for children and youth in the Peterborough community, with the aim of preventing or reducing substance use harm among youth.