Perceived impacts of Supervised Consumption Sites (SCS) on key service aspects and settings: Reports from Canadian National Questionnaire on Overdose Monitoring (CNQOM).

INTRODUCTION: Supervised Consumption Sites (SCS) are public health interventions aimed to reduce harms associated with illicit substance use. SCS contend with polarization and public scrutiny which hinder its implementation and operation despite robust evidence demonstrating its effectiveness at preventing fatal overdoses. In this study, we examined data from a nationwide survey to explore attitudes of PWUS (individuals with lived or living experiences of substance use), healthcare providers (HCP), and first responders towards SCS.

METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study reporting data from the Canadian National Questionnaire on Overdose Monitoring (CNQOM) database. One component of the CNQOM focused on assessing attitudes towards SCS, including perspectives on client considerations, community impact, impact on emergency services, the healthcare system, and other diverse settings. Participants responded to a 5-point Likert scale and data was analyzed using the Wilcoxon Rank Sum Test.

RESULTS: 1579 participants across Canada were included in this study, including 826 PWUS, 381 HCP, and 372 first responders. In general, participants felt that SCS positively impacted certain service aspects, such as client access and safety. However, participants held mixed attitudes towards aspects such as community benefits and healthcare resource utilization. Although participants did view SCS negatively on a few aspects, the magnitude of these perceptions was generally smaller than the positive perceptions of SCS.

CONCLUSION: While the findings of this study highlighted the perceived positive impacts of SCS from the perspective of key stakeholders, there is still a need to address service gaps during program development, ongoing public education, and areas where the key interest groups could be better informed about SCS.