Report to / Rapport au:
Comité des services communautaires et de
protection
and Council/et au Conseil
4 April 2008 / le 4 avril 2008
Coordonnatrice de comité
|
City Wide / À l'échelle de la Ville |
Ref N°:
ACS2008-CCS-CPS-0015 |
SUBJECT: enhancements to the clean-up/recovery component of the Provincially
mandated harm reduction strategy
OBJET: AMÉLIORATIONS
À LA COMPOSANTE DÉSINTOXICATION ET RÉCUPÉRATION DE LA STRATÉGIE DE RÉDUCTION
DES MÉFAITS IMPOSÉE PAR LA PROVINCE
That the
Community and Protective Services Committee recommend that Council request that
the Province provide the $200,000 required to fund the Medical Officer of
Health’s proposed enhancements to the clean-up/recovery component of the
Provincially mandated harm reduction strategy.
Que le
Comité des services communautaires et de protection recommande au Conseil de
demander à ce que la province fournisse les 200 000 $ requis afin de
financer les améliorations proposées par le médecin chef en santé publique à la
composante désintoxication et récupération de la Stratégie de réduction des
méfaits imposée par la province.
On 3 April 2008, the Community and Protective
Service Committee received the following Notice of Motion from Councillor Diane
Holmes:
WHEREAS
the occurrence of public encounters with discarded needles has increased since
the cancellation of the safer inhalation program;
AND WHEREAS these encounters can present
health and safety hazards;
AND WHEREAS numerous community groups have
requested that the City make improvements to the current Needle Hunter Program;
AND WHEREAS the current program is limited by
current funding levels;
AND WHEREAS the Medical Officer of Health has
proposed the following enhancements to this program:
·
The addition of one more sector
(Vanier) to the City’s existing three sectors
·
Increase to the number of daily
hours of collection
·
Allowance for an extra crew based
on the need and size of geographical area covered
·
Addition of a permanent FTE Public
Health Inspector trainee position to manage 311 calls
·
Addition of the use of a City
vehicle for the new position to provide for a "rapid response"
capability
·
Further deployment of the black
box program
·
Implement a public awareness
campaign on safe needle disposal and information about the City’s integrated
response system to discarded needles
AND WHEREAS the proposed enhancements will cost
approximately $200,000;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Community and Protective Services Committee direct City Council to request that the Province provide the $200,000 required to fund the Medical Officer of Health’s proposed enhancements to the clean-up/recovery component of the Provincially mandated harm reduction strategy.
In
2001, the City engaged Causeway Work Centre to provide community needle
clean-up services, through their Needle Hunter Program. To date, this contractor has been meeting
the City’s contractual requirements. In
2006, there was a significant increase in the number of discarded needles
reported in Ward 12. Measures were
implemented to increase the responsiveness of the Needle Hunter Program.
Ottawa
Public Health (OPH) has, since the beginning of the needle exchange in 1991,
implemented measures to respond to public concerns of discarded needles and
public safety issues, including the installation of needle drop boxes in areas
experiencing significant numbers of discarded needles; a by-law prohibiting the
disposal of needles as household waste; the initiation of a Needle Hunter
Program in 1998; creation of a central data collection system to accurately
track the number of discarded needles reported; and, the distribution and web
access of public education materials on safe disposal procedures.
The
above measures now form key parts of the City integrated response system to
discarded needles, which was introduced in 2001. This system was coordinated through the City’s Call Centre, now
311, to provide residents a central point of access to address their concerns.
Causeway
Work Centre, a non-profit agency, was awarded the Needle Hunter contract in
2001 and again in 2004. The Needle
Hunter Program operates from April through November (subject to weather
conditions), two-hours per day, seven days per week. In 2003, Ottawa Public Health obtained Council approval to
increase the ‘needle hunter’ program budget by $10,000 to a total of $50,000,
to increase the program’s ability to respond to additional locations where
discarded needles were being reported.
Three teams of a total of 18 individuals conduct daily operations in three
geographical locations in the City including Hintonburg, Centretown and the
Byward Market. On an ongoing basis, a
liaison is maintained with the contractor and City officials, to direct the
“Needle Hunter” crews of two or three people to conduct daily early-morning
search and clean-up operations at emerging hot spots. Causeway Work Centre provides an annual report on its activities
related to the contracted services.
At
present, the specific city sectors and respective targeted locations covered by
the Needle Hunter Program include:
a. Hintonburg/Somerset
West area: parks, school yards, day care centres, community centre, Bronson
Avenue, Preston Street and various other hot-spot locations
b. Centretown/Chinatown:
parks, school yards, community health centre, day care centres, Gladstone, Bell
and Bank Streets locations and various other hot-spot locations
c. Byward
Market/Lowertown: parks, school yards,
bridges, day care centres, Shepherds of Good Hope, Union Mission, Salvation
Army areas, Sandy Hill Community Health Centre, Rideau Street and Montreal
Road, as well as various other hot spots
The following is a breakdown of
the total number of discarded needles reported to the City each year.
Year
|
2000 |
2001 |
2002 |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
Total
|
813 |
497 |
644 |
562 |
809 |
714 |
1,523 |
2,029 |
It would appear that OPH’s objective numbers are mirroring the community’s subjective experience. This is a complex phenomenon that defies easy explanation or solution. One contributing factor for the increase is that the Needle Hunter contract was extended for an additional month in 2006 because of the mild weather and increased by $10,000 again in the fall of 2007. Other factors may include large numbers of needles clustered in a “single find” reported. The 2007 numbers also include a number collected by a community activist in ward 12. The recent increase of discarded needle reports to 3-1-1 and in the media has been exclusively in Ward 12. These finds are all within close proximity to shelters.
Current
Status
Causeway Works Centre is responsible for 70-90% of the
total number of discarded needles collected by the City’s response system. The remainder is collected by Surface
Operations, By-law officers, Public Health Inspectors and Site Program staff. In 2006, the Needle Hunter Program collected
1,381 of the 1,526 discarded needles reported.
This represents less than 0.5% of the needles distributed by the needle
exchange program. It has been observed
that clients are increasingly using the “black box” program to dispose of their
used needles.
A recent study conducted by the Departmental Site
Consultative Group indicated that 110-150% of syringes distributed by the
Needle Exchange program are recovered through the City’s integrated response
system in any given month. Legitimate
purchases from pharmacies and other sources represent a significant portion of
the needles “on the street.”
To date,
Causeway Work Centre has fulfilled its contractual obligations to the City’s
satisfaction. Causeway has been very
responsive to emerging hot spots.
OPH is working with community members and Causeway Work
Centre staff to explore strategies to address the number of discarded needles
in Ward 12. These include: completing
site visits with community members; the doubling of the number of daily sweeps;
improving the City’s internal communication and responsiveness; and, community
education sessions on safe disposal of needles, delivered in partnership with
the AIDS Committee of Ottawa.
The current annual budget available for the Needle Hunter
program is $50,000, which provides 1,470 hours of ‘needle hunter’ work at a
rate of $31.20/hour. These funds cover
the cost of the crews and the ongoing support services that are provided by the
contractor. The contract is currently
being tendered and is usually awarded to the cheapest bid, as long as it meets
the standards specified in the tender.
Proposed Program Restructuring and Expansion
Despite the program's notable success, a program
restructuring may be required to increase clean-up coverage in response to
growing concerns in certain wards. A
proposed restructuring would include the addition of one more sector to the
City’s existing three sectors, an increase to the number of daily hours, and an
allowance for an extra crew based on the need and size of geographical area
covered. The proposed restructuring
would include the following components.
Budget
|
Sector of City |
Vanier |
By Ward/Lowertown |
Hintonburg |
Centretown |
|
Estimated cost* |
$16,000 |
$42,000 |
$21,000 |
$16,000 |
|
Cost of supplies |
$750 |
$2,500 |
$1,000 |
$750 |
Total
estimated cost: $100,000.00
* Estimated cost is based on figures from previous
tender: 2005-2008. Costs may increase depending on the bids
submitted by prospective contractors (2008 tender closed on 20 March).
As
part of its commitment to service improvement, OPH also recommends the
following:
Review the possibility of permanently increasing the number
of sweeps with additional funding of approximately $84,000:
Implement a public awareness campaign on safe needle
disposal and information about the City’s integrated response system to
discarded needles.
To implement all these proposed enhancements, the total
estimate, per year for the Needle Hunter Program would be $200,000.
CONSULTATION
The following groups were consulted
in the preparation of the Motion:
Dalhousie Community Safety Committee
Bank St. Safety Committee
Action Sandy Hill
Hintonburgh Community Safety
Committee
McNabb Neighbourhood Improvement
Bunch
Neighbourhood Watch - District 23
Concerned Citizens for Safer
Neighbourhoods
Community and Protective Services Comments – Ottawa
Public Health
Ottawa Public Health cares about community health and safety. The Medical Officer of Health endorses this proposal as an approach to respond to community concerns and address health risks.
There
are no financial implications associated with this report.
Upon Council approval, the City Clerk will prepare the necessary letter to Province.