First, I want to say something. I came here with an approach to react to overdoses, but in our facility we have a drop-in centre with peers and community workers, and we also have apartments. We reach out to people who are homeless. We try to bring them to treatment and also into a program that runs over three years with a plan of action to change. That's one thing we do.
The other thing is this. When we're talking about safe injection sites, it would be a big approach for Canadians to talk about consumption rooms, so that way you don't have only people with needles in those places but also people who smoke crack and use other substances.
There is also a reaction to different things that bother society in downtown Vancouver, downtown Montreal, or here in Ottawa. Treatment is also a reaction. Naloxone is also a reaction. I think it's very important that we start educating our young as soon as possible, starting from the lower grades, with an approach of harm reduction, not with an approach of prohibition. It is the worst thing to do; it makes it tempting for people to use.
Also, I want to say that all users are not always in the streets. They also live in houses. I want to say also that people who use drugs get worse and worse in their condition if their conditions in life are bad. If you don't have proper work, a proper amount of income, you're not staying in an environmentally safe place, and you don't eat properly, you will go down very fast. It's very important to understand that. If you have the capacity to sustain yourself with a good quality of life, you might not end up downtown. You might have your addiction for many years before you seek treatment.
From my experience, not all users want to go into treatment. Some don't see themselves as sick people, so it's very important to consider that also when you implement programs in Canada.
Thank you.