Loitering outside Calgary pharmacy raises concerns over safety

On any given day, a number of people can bee seen in varied conditions loitering outside eRx Pharmacy in the southwest neighbourhood of Sunalta. According to Mark Wang, who owns the YYC Botox next door, the situation has been getting worse recently.

“They have been doing ‘OAT’, opioid agonist therapy for the last four or five years,” explained Wang. “In the last year it has significantly picked up in terms of their proportion patient base.”

OAT involves prescribing methadone or another synthetic opioid to help people suffering from addiction by reducing cravings and withdrawal symptoms, and for anyone who is unhoused or suffering from addictions, pharmacists aren’t allowed to give more than one dose at a time in order to ensure proper dosage and ensure the drug is not being sold to others. Because of that, Wang says a number of unsafe situations have occurred.

“Open drug use, fights on the street, having to clean up waste and biological waste as well,” Wang noted. “On a couple of occasions I have personally been assaulted by individuals for trying to maintain some level of social order.”

Remnants of fires, litter, and more could be seen within the vicinity of the pharmacy, and it’s gotten to the point where Wang is losing business.

“We’ve lost some patients in the process as well because they don’t feel safe leaving their car and entering our building,” said Wang.

But that doesn’t mean that Wang doesn’t sympathize with those seeking treatment.

“The only issue I have is not the therapy itself, but rather the lack of control and enforcement by management,” Wang shared. “(Other pharmacies) offer addiction treatment and they do a great job and offer tremendous value to the community.”

Some Sunalta residents like Julie Patmore tell Global News she doesn’t have any concerns when it comes to safety in the area, saying the people seeking help have nowhere else to go.

“There’s a crowd of 10 people out front. Where are those people supposed to be?” questioned Patmore. “You’ve got the most policed train station in the city, where people are getting kicked out in -25 weather. You have a complete elimination of services in the area… so yeah, things look a lot worse than they are.”

Other organizations like the Sunalta Community Association are hoping someone can help. In an letter sent to all three levels of government, executive director Kaylee Bossert wrote that their staff routinely responds to situation outside the scope of community development, and that a meaningful coordinated response that goes beyond just enforcement and election cycles is needed.

SMART Clinic located on Centre Street in north Calgary also provides addictions services. Clinical services manager Ravneet Sidhu says it can be challenging, but balancing treatment and safety can be done.

“As a health care provider to your patients, either it’s a clinic or pharmacy, it’s all about communication,” Sidhu noted. “There can be a time where you have to set boundaries with patients like, ‘OK, this is a boundary, and this is the policy. If you’re not going to follow it, we’re not going to serve you’.”

Sidhu continued, saying maintain relationships with vulnerable people comes with challenges, and it takes work to help people recover.

“In the generalized population, when we see someone with addictions we do have stigma about it, but as health care providers we see a bigger picture underneath,” said Sidhu.

“(Trauma) has put them into this place or has put them into a situation where they’re making these choices or making these choices as a way to cope.”

In an email to Global News, the Alberta College of Pharmacy says they expect each pharmacist to adhere to the OAT guidelines while assessing patients and dispensing methadone, which includes but isn’t limited to assessing each patient and screening for intoxication and review patient administration records and Netcare profile for concerning activity.

Global News made multiple attempts to contact the owner of eRx Pharmacy for comment but did not hear back by deadline.

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