SASKATOON — Prairie Harm Reduction communications manager Miranda Deck says that although they operate a safe consumption site and work closely with the city’s first responders, the ongoing overdose crisis still needs to be addressed, and people with addictions to illegal substances need greater support.
Prairie Harm Reduction, which opened in October 2021, is not only a safe consumption site but also provides harm reduction services and support for families struggling to find stability. It operates two semi-independent homes for youth aged 16 to 21 and offers community education.
Deck told SaskToday that this crisis is no longer just a city or provincial issue. She said all levels of government, including federal, must help organizations like theirs respond to the escalating situation.
“We want all elected officials — city, provincial and federal — to work together on real solutions to the overdose crisis. That means investing in harm reduction, housing, and mental health supports, and listening to frontline organizations like ours so policies reflect what’s actually happening in our communities,” Deck said.
“We have support staff that help people who access our services to navigate everything from appointments, i.e. referrals to treatment, housing, etc. We communicate with these [first responders: firefighters, paramedics and police] agencies regularly regarding overdose numbers, drug alerts and drug testing results.”
Mental Health and Addictions shadow minister Betty Nippi-Albright accused the provincial government of treating overdoses as a public relations issue rather than a public health emergency.
“We call for meaningful action for those still fighting to survive. Their [government] response has been slow, fragmented and dangerously disconnected from the reality on the ground. While I was out delivering a donation following a press conference, someone overdosed in the alley behind us. That moment wasn’t just heartbreaking; it was a brutal reminder of how close this crisis is to all of us. It’s happening in real time, in real places, to real people,” Nippi-Albright said.
The Saskatoon Centre MLA also urged her government counterpart, Minister Lorri Carr, to implement a six-point plan. She repeated her call for the government to declare a state of emergency — a motion voted down in the spring session — and to roll out a real-time drug alert system and transparent overdose data.
She said the government should release a full accounting of public dollars spent on addiction services, publish long-promised reports on Willowview and similar facilities, create an emergency action plan to fund overdose prevention and mental health supports, and improve tracking and reporting of drug toxicity deaths.
“Saskatchewan is in the grip of a drug crisis that demands immediate action. Between Aug. 17 and 26, the Saskatoon Fire Department responded to 84 suspected overdoses, many requiring multiple doses of Naloxone to keep people alive. This isn’t a spike; it’s a public health emergency,” Nippi-Albright said.
“Those struggling with substance use disorder are our neighbours, our friends, our family members, and they deserve care, compassion and a government that refuses to look away. To every person impacted by this crisis: I see you. I stand with you. And I will not stop until the Sask. Party [government] responds with urgency, transparency and a commitment to saving lives and responds to what the leadership of this moment demands.”
She said carfentanil — a dangerously potent fentanyl analogue described as green-blue crystals — is behind the spike in overdose cases.
SaskToday reached out to the government for a statement on how to deal with the rising cases of overdose, but they have yet to respond. We will update the story once we receive the statement.
