School of Nursing, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada.
Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada.
Can J Public Health. 2023 Dec;114(6):934-942. doi: 10.17269/s41997-023-00810-4. Epub 2023 Aug 15.
In British Columbia (BC), over 11,000 people have died of an overdose since 2016. Recently, an all-party standing committee on health tabled a report identifying several gaps in BC's overdose response. Chief among these is the inequitable distribution of supervised consumption and overdose prevention services across BC and barriers to accessing services that are currently available. In this context, public bathrooms continue to act as consumption spaces and contribute to overdose-related risks and fatalities.
The Safer Bathroom project sought to address long-standing policy and practice gaps by developing a toolkit to improve bathroom overdose prevention and response. Activities included a literature review and cross-sectoral, province-wide consultation (Fall 2021), the creation and launch of the Safer Bathroom Toolkit (Fall 2022), and knowledge transfer activities (ongoing).
The toolkit meets four objectives. First, it provides a bathroom safety checklist that helps identify and, most importantly, mitigate safety risks. Second, it offers organizational guidance on developing a bathroom safety policy and procedure. Third, it includes practical resources such as staff training material and signs that communicate bathroom safety messages in a non-stigmatizing manner. Finally, it identifies bathroom architecture and design features that can increase or decrease overdose-related risks.
The Safer Bathroom Toolkit is a highly comprehensive resource developed in response to the overdose crisis. However, significant reporting, research, policy, and practice gaps remain. This paper concludes with an overview of recommendations for advancing overdose prevention and response efforts within and beyond the bathroom context.
在不列颠哥伦比亚省（BC），自 2016 年以来，已有超过 11000 人死于过量用药。最近，一个跨党派的健康问题常务委员会提交了一份报告，指出了 BC 过量用药应对方面的几个差距。其中最主要的是，在 BC 各地，监督性使用和过量预防服务的分配不均，以及目前可获得的服务获取障碍。在这种情况下，公共浴室继续充当使用场所，导致与过量用药相关的风险和死亡增加。
“更安全浴室”项目旨在通过开发一个工具包来改善浴室中的过量预防和应对措施，解决长期存在的政策和实践差距。活动包括文献回顾和跨部门、全省范围的磋商（2021 年秋季）、创建和推出“更安全浴室”工具包（2022 年秋季）以及知识转让活动（正在进行中）。
该工具包满足四个目标。首先，它提供了一个浴室安全检查表，有助于识别并最重要的是减轻安全风险。其次，它为制定浴室安全政策和程序提供了组织指导。第三，它包括实用资源，如员工培训材料和以非污名化方式传达浴室安全信息的标志。最后，它确定了可以增加或减少与过量用药相关风险的浴室建筑和设计特征。
“更安全浴室”工具包是针对过量用药危机而开发的一个高度全面的资源。然而，仍存在重大的报告、研究、政策和实践差距。本文最后概述了在浴室环境内外推进过量用药预防和应对工作的建议。
