On March 23, the Government of Saskatchewan released their 2022-2023 budget, which did not include funding for Saskatchewan’s only safe consumption site. The controversial decision has been met with disappointment by the USask community.  

Prairie Harm Reduction is a non-profit organization in Saskatoon that has operated as Saskatchewan’s only supervised safe consumption site since October 2020. The facilities serve those who are at risk for Hepatitis C and HIV/AIDS and offers a safe environment and resources to reduce discrimination and death. 

Pamela Downe, a professor at the University of Saskatchewan in the department of archaeology and anthropology, is a medical anthropologist who specializes in community-based research on HIV/AIDS. Downe told the Sheaf that because Saskatchewan has the highest rate of HIV in Canada, the government’s refusal to fund PHR’s operations will only exacerbate the addiction and HIV/AIDS crisis. 

“The current HIV/AIDS rates in Saskatchewan are over three times the national rate,” Downe said. “Transmission through the sharing of needles is recorded at higher rates than in most other provinces, making HIV/AIDS and addiction … interconnected issues.”

Jen Amarualik-Yaremko, a fourth-year USask political studies student, responded to the government’s newly released budget and lack of funding for PHR by hosting a fundraiser last week. 

“I feel like everybody goes to university not just to get a job, but also so we can better make a difference,” Amarualik-Yaremko said. “And you can’t really do that unless you actually start doing something.” 

Amarualik-Yaremko, who uses she/they pronouns, organized a table in the Arts Tunnel to collect donations for the maintenance of PHR and spread awareness about its lack of provincial support. In just a few short days, she raised over $350.

Many students and faculty members approached the table to offer their support with kind words and donations. But despite their successful first week of fundraising, Amarualik-Yaremko intends to continue their work, as they believe that there is much more that can be done.

Currently, PHR is operating exclusively from fundraising dollars, and all proceeds from PHR’s store and donations go directly to their funding and maintenance. Despite extensive community support, the PHR safe consumption site is harrowed by lacking support from the government. 

Although the provincial government’s 2022-2023 budget intends to invest $470 million into mental health and addictions programs and services, Downe says that the government’s plan to address mental health and addiction is too general to fully address the needs of those affected by Saskatchewan’s opioid crisis.

“Without direct and sustained support for specific programs — such as safe consumption sites and strategies — that have been repeatedly proven to save lives and improve access to treatment, the current government’s plan will not have the impact that is desperately needed right now,” Downe said. 

PHR’s community-focused environment has been proven to provide safe support and treatment, with no fatal overdoses and only four overdoses total this past year.

Furthermore, supportive programs for those directly affected by addiction, like those offered by PHR, have been proven to decrease cases of overdose and death. 

“Strong and safe communities are constituted by bonds of trust and commitments to collective care,” Downe said. “There must be governmental support for public community-based organizations that are trusted to provide the services that work.” 

“PHR does life-saving and heroic work. It needs and deserves support.”

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Rayyann Haque | Staff Writer

Graphic: Jaymie Stachyruk | Graphics Editor