• The NSS-CoP website is LIVE! Visit us here to register! We urge current members who haven’t done so to re-register via our website. We are also on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook! Follow us for updates, news, and happenings in our community of practice!
   
• The Canadian Pharmacists Association is hosting a webinar Safer Opioid Supply: Spotlight on the Vital Role of Pharmacists in Harm Reduction Programs on Wednesday, March 2nd at 1pm EST. Here is a brief description of the webinar: "This webinar will begin with a live discussion with the Honourable Carolyn Bennett, Minister of Health & Addictions and Associate Minister of Health, on the federal government’s approach to harm reduction and the important role that pharmacists play in supporting people who use drugs. Following the Minister’s remarks, our panel of experts will examine and discuss SOS and other harm reduction strategies, review opportunities for interprofessional collaboration and focus on the pharmacist’s role as an advocate for patients with addiction." Click HERE to register.
   
• Registration is still open for Stimulus Connect 17 - Emergency, happening on Thursday, March 3rd from 3-5pm EST. Here is a brief description of the webinar: "Harm Reduction groups have never had to deal with this much disaster and chaos. The mess has included climate change, toxic drug supply injury and deaths, multiple loss, COVID-19, conservative governments, convoys and occupations, supply chain disruptions and NIMBY surveillance. Your organization may have a dusty Y2K emergency plan or none at all, join us as we Connect on Emergency: Safety For Harm Reduction Staff and Volunteers (Part 1)." Click HERE to register.
   
• NorWest Community Health Centres launched a one-year pilot of Lifeguard Digital Health’s Lifeguard App—a mobile app resource as part of NorWest Community Health Centres’ response to the overdose crisis in June of 2021. The Lifeguard App supports people who use drugs by providing a direct link to emergency responders in the event of an overdose. The app also provides information and resources for both people who use drugs and their broader communities, such as alerts on local supply contaminants, Naloxone and CPR instructions, Suicide and crisis support lines, and information about community services, mental health and addiction treatment services. NorWest Community Health Centres made the app available to the population of northwestern Ontario. Thanks to the efforts of several community partners and outreach workers across northwestern Ontario, the Lifeguard App has seen use in the five regions in which it is available. Through January 2022, nearly 800 people have downloaded the app, which has been used in over 7,000 individual sessions. NorWest is now seeking partners to sustain and potentially expand the implementation of lifeguard in communities across Ontario. They are hoping interested partners will consider earmarking year-end funds for this purpose. If this is of potential interest, please contact Juanita Lawson (JLawson@norwestchc.org) as soon as possible.
   
• Registration is open for the Opioid Use in Primary Care Virtual Conference happening virtually on April 8th, 2022 from 8am to 4pm EST. Here is a brief description of the conference: "Designed for anyone involved in the care and support of people who use opioids, this one-day event will provide the opportunity to learn about and discuss topics related to opioid use practices, policies, treatments and harm reduction. We invite health care professionals, people with lived and living experience, family members, researchers, policymakers and educators to engage in a broad range of topics including transitions in care, lessons from COVID-19 and other major disruptions, the drug poisoning crisis, integration of care, safer supply initiatives, stigma and opioid use lessons from other countries around opioid use. The conference also provides a networking opportunity with others in the field of opioid use and treatment." Click HERE to register.
   
• You are invited to attend an exciting speaker series presented by experts across the province throughout February and March 2022. The Building Enhanced Treatment Response (BETR) Initiative’s CME-approved educational sessions are designed to build enhanced treatment responses for HCV and HIV care. The goal is to establish a broader community of practice across Ontario. Physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, therapists, system navigators, and harm reduction workers are encouraged to attend! Click HERE to register.

Share your skills:

Share your successes:

Share your success stories, your reports, and safer supply resources that you develop with the NSS-CoP membership through:

• Our meetings
• Our newsletter
• Our resource library (currently housed on Google Drive)
• The NSS-CoP Google Group/listserv