Community Drug Consumption Room Demonstration Project

The project aims to develop community pillars of healthcare through feedback circles of communal health, community resources and solutions, with DCR’s as an example. Local DCR demonstrations will present an observable clean, safe spaces where people would be able to bring their own drugs to use, in the presence of community medical members capable of reversing overdoses, among other support.

On-Site: DCR Demonstration

Engaging in feedback about local struggles, coeducation about addiction care and DCR’s as a resource.

Off-Site: Community Organizing

Offering attentive space for people to feel heard while receiving their critical feedback about local struggles.

Measuring Momentum

Measuring local momentum towards a human centered healthcare pillar through direct community and power building.

Drug Consumption Rooms, DCRs, are protected spaces for hygienic consumption of drugs in a non-judgmental community environment.

Who the project is being created for:

Active Drug Users and Non-Drug Users in substance addiction impacted communities of Philadelphia supported by WRC & locals.

What & How this works

The goal is to build relationships with marginalized users, who use on the streets or in other risky and unhygienic conditions.

DCRs are internationally practiced healthcare resources where drug users can consume drugs in a safe environment for more hygienic use. They aim to reduce morbidity and mortality by identifying tainted substances in street obtained drugs, encouraging lower risk use patterns through co-education, and increasing community support. DCRs improve public access to resources in economically disenfranchised communities, and are a useful tool to identify emergent problems or needs among people who use drugs.

Our demonstrations will consist of an Onsite & Offsite approach, each focused on the process of observation, education and participation with community members. Our operations will consist of community member and material resource contributions from WRC membership aligned addiction care activists.

On-Site: DCR Demonstration

Typically, drug consumption rooms provide drug users with:Injecting equipmentSnorting equipmentSmoking equipment Counseling opportunities available before, during and after drug consumptionEmergency care in the event of overdosePrimary medical care and referral to appropriate social, healthcare, and addiction specific treatment services.

Our demonstrations will provide addiction care kits and community members engaging in feedback about local struggles, coeducation about addiction care and DCR’s as a resource.

Community Members Per demonstration station:

1 Peer Activist- community members affected by addiction harm, sharing their experiences and engaging in generative discussion while learning about DCR’s.

2 Addiction care Activists- peers with the capacity to effectively co-educate in emotionally intense interactions on the DCR process, overdose reversals and community medical resources.

Additional invitations extended to:

Home health aids

Medics

Social workers

Doctors

Registered Nurses

Health Educators

Psychologists

Social pedagogues

Nursing staff

Qualified student assistants

**participants must be 18 or older, or 16 with a parent or guardian and appropriate release forms**

Material Resources

General equipment:Canopy TablesChairsPrinted materials/Design materialsClipboardsCot Bed(Chill Zone Mat)(Creative Trash Art “Facilities that offer these provisions do not supply or inject members with drugs”Creative trash Art- w Kit pictures & content descriptionsCreative trash art- w struggle form blown upCrash Kit (if available)Gloves

Sterile supplies.Injection equipment:28 gage syringes, 30 gage syringes, sterile cookers, filters, tourniquets, water, alcohol wipes, vitamin c powder, test stripSmoking equipment:stem, screens, pusher, lighter, condoms, alcohol wipes, mouth pieceSnorting equipment:straw, card, razor, condoms, alcohol wipes

Secure environment, free from criminal prosecution.Creative option: Small, open booth inside to display drug members stationing in view of medical member.

Lifesaving support. Display example crash kit equipment DCR members use to respond immediately to an overdose.

Equipment: Fentanyl Test Strip, Naloxone (intramuscular injection and nasal spray)

Off-Site: Community Organizing

Community Members Per teams:

1 Peer Activist- Offsite peer activists will offer the capacity to safely dispose of publicly discarded used needles with provided supplies while learning about DCR’s. Due to hazardous conditions encountered in this role persons should be 18 or older or must have appropriate release forms to participate.

1 Addiction care Activist- peers with the capacity to distribute addiction care kits and effectively co-educate in emotionally intense interactions on the DCR process, overdose reversals and community medical resources door to door and in the general public.

Material Resources

Syringe clean up equipment:

Sharps containers - 2 Gallon

Syringe Reacher

Hand Sanitizer

Gloves

Creative option: Table for community activities along demonstration area including but not limited to prepared food or snacks, various types of art making supplies or projects, Mutual aid resource markets, etc.

Locations

Primary demonstration areas include, but are not limited to:

Southwest Philadelphia

55th Chester Ave

South Philadelphia

East and West communities of Snyder

1200-1900 Point Breeze Ave

West Philadelphia

41st and Lancaster

North Philadelphia

19132 Market Frankford Line from Somerset to Frankford Transportation Terminal with stations to the northern and southern communities.

Initial location selections resulted from identifying WRC member residential locations within zip codes with the great number and increases of overdose deaths, according to the 2020 City of Philadelphia Accidental Overdose Report1, link attached.

Timeframe

Overall demonstration timeframe, removing the variable of consistent member and material availability, is for a total duration of 6-7 months (24-28 weeks). Demonstrations, info sessions & community gatherings will be scheduled throughout.

Week of July 1, 2021: Our first demonstrations in the Somerset area start with a pilot WRC action team.

Week of August 26th: A project assessment will be set In coordination with the estimated 1st supply order depletion timeframe (week 10)

Week of October 27: a project assessment will be set

Week of December 22: a project assessment will be set

Feedback

Community feedback will be assessed in two categories:

Active Drug Users

Non-Active Drug Users

Discussions will be oriented around:-states of communal health based on experiences of shared struggles-knowledge of & access to community resources-solutions that can be built by local communities-DCRs as a resource

Plan schedules and budget goals

Demonstration duration: 3-4 hours, 3-4 days a weekDemonstration time set: 11am-3pm(AM shift) OR 2pm-6pm(PM shift)

WRC collective will account for all member contributions at $25 an hour with an estimated time commitment of 384 hours per role for the 6 month set timeframe. Dispersal is included in the budget once project materials are funded.

Total Estimated Human contribution cost for all 5 DCR demonstration roles (not including kit making and set up, or coordination time contributions, accounting separate): $48,000

Budget Goals

Demonstration Material Cost:

Commercial Canopy: $2508 ft

Tables: $90

Chairs: $80 per 4

Cot Bed: $84

Printed materials, pens, design materials, clipboards, signage supplies: $1,000

Creative optional booth: $300 ($100 member contribution $200 material)

Total: $1804

Addiction care Wholesale Supply Cost

Project total accounts for supply cost for total for timeframe projection. 1st supply order will consist of supplies for 2,500 kits(INJ, SNT, SMK) and will not include purchase of naloxone.

Estimated 10-week Budget Total:

+$1,804 (Demonstration Material)

+$9,627.21 (Addiction care Supplies)

+$20,000 (member contributions)

____________________________________

= $31,357.81

Estimated 6 month Budget Total:

+$1,804 (Demonstration Material)

+$57,230.16 (Addiction care Supplies)

+$48,000 (member contributions )

__________________________

= $106,887.36

Project Scope

Engage active drug using and non-active drug with community members in the substance addiction impacted communities, in above identified locations, for a total duration of 6-7 months (24-28 weeks).

Measuring Momentum

Engaging in feedback about experiences of shared struggle, community resources and solutions, and Community DCR’s as an example will contribute to the local development of community pillars of healthcare.

Through direct community feedback and localized public data, we will be measuring local momentum towards pillar building in three areas:

Experiences of shared struggle

Local interpretation of user/non-user community relationships

Perceived and identified powerholders

Community Resources

Identified community based material resources

Identified community human power resources

Local Solution Building

Identified community resource based proposed actions

Supports and skepticisms of community proposed actions

Progression of organizing community proposed actions

Citations: