PREPARED BY: Substance Use Prevention And Harm Reduction
DATE: 2025-06-26
SUBJECT: 2024 WECOSS Annual Report
BACKGROUND
The Windsor-Essex Community Opioid and Substance Strategy (WECOSS) is a collaboration of 90 community partners and individuals with lived experience brought together to address the local substance use crisis. As the backbone agency, the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit (WECHU) is responsible for coordinating the Strategy, monitoring local data for trends in substance use events, supporting the development, implementation, and evaluation of projects, and building sustainable communication channels to disseminate evidence-based information to the public. Utilizing a four-pillar approach, the WECOSS works to address the harms of substance use at the community level through Prevention and Education, Harm Reduction, Treatment and Recovery, and Enforcement and Justice interventions.
DISCUSSION
Each year, the WECHU as the structural backbone organization collates data from the collective efforts of all partners under the strategy, including the work of each of the four WECOSS pillars. The Annual Report is posted to the strategy website at WECOSS.ca to share with the community and partners to highlight the year over year successes of the strategy. The 2024 WECOSS highlights are as follows:
Prevention and Education
As part of its prevention and education efforts, the WECOSS launched a multi-platform communication campaign. This included transit advertisements on 10 buses in downtown Windsor to promote WECOSS alerts, a Google Display ad campaign that generated 429,765 impressions and 4,445 clicks, and social media posts that reached 36,933 users. Additionally, the WECOSS.ca website received 19,046 views between August 12 and December 4.
Harm Reduction
Community Overdose Prevention Training Events were held across the region to improve community members’ knowledge and capacity to respond to and prevent overdose situations. In total 10 events were organized in which, 138 naloxone kits were distributed, and an equal number of community partners were trained in their use. Additionally, 595 drug test strips were provided to support safer substance practices. Evaluation data showed that 94.6% of participants reported feeling confident in applying the training they received.
As part of ongoing efforts, the Needle Syringe Program (NSP), in partnership with Pozitive Pathways Community Services, and its satellite sites, distributed harm reduction supplies and provided education to people who use substances. The NSP recorded 27, 511 client contacts, 582,501 needles distributed, and 57 referrals made to other services. Similarly, the WECHU’s Ontario Naloxone Program continued to operate to provide eligible community agencies with naloxone kits and training to distribute to their clients who uses substances, as well as their friends and families. Overall, 30 community partners were actively involved with the ONP, and 4 new members onboarded in 2024. Additionally, 1,838 naloxone kits and single spray doses were distributed, and 1, 251 individuals were trained in naloxone administration by ONP partners. Further, the Drug Test Distribution (DTS) Program, which operates like the ONP, but operationalized by the WECHU, launched in 2024. Through the DTS Program, the WECHU onboarded 8 community partners who distributed 385 drug test strips - 136 fentanyl, 121 benzodiazepine and 128 xylazine.
Treatment and Recovery
The WEC Connect searchable inventory officially launched on October 23, 2024, featuring over 120 programs aimed at supporting individuals impacted by substance use and mental health problems. Between the launch date and January 17, the platform received 4,579 page visits. The social media launch generated strong engagement, reaching over 22,000 users, with more than 3,100 engagements and 220 link clicks.
Enforcement and Justice
Substance Use in Corrections workshops were delivered to community partners to provide education on effectively supporting individuals who are justice involved and use/d substances. The purpose of workshops was to support successful reintegration of justice-involved individuals back into their communities following release from custody focusing on substance supports. Additionally, the workshops were targeted to corrections officers, post-secondary students, and other relevant service providers and included messaging on topics such as substance use, harm reduction, stigma reduction and community reintegration supports.
Over the course of the year, four workshops were delivered, reaching 197 participants. Each workshop provided tailored education and resources to address knowledge gaps among current and prospective justice involved support workers, including, staff from the South-Essex Community Council, corrections officers and other service providers at the Southwest Detention Centre, Police Foundations students at St. Clair College, and School of Social Work students at the University of Windsor.
Opioid and Substance Use Notification System (OSUNS)
Between February and July 2024, eight drug alerts were issued through WECOSS, with five of those occurring in June and July prompting a proactive response from the WECOSS Leadership Committee. In response, several key measures were implemented between July and September to strengthen community awareness and coordination. A Community Submission Form was added to WECOSS.ca to enable real-time reporting of drug market changes and overdose activity. Alert modifications were introduced, including the integration of the National Overdose Response Service (NORS), embedding a direct link to the WECOSS statistics page within alerts, and refining alert criteria to improve relevance and clarity. Further, a naloxone training event was held on July 25 at Glengarry, where 31 kits were distributed and 26 individuals were trained. Efforts to enhance partnerships and outreach also took place, including meetings with local shelter agencies and street outreach services to support coordinated responses and shared strategies. Referral pathways and information about NORS were promoted through WECOSS.ca and social media channels.
CONCLUSION
Together, WECOSS partners work towards the vision of a healthier community by building effective partnerships, sustaining community-level interventions, and enhancing the quality and range of supports available to reduce substance use issues locally. The Annual Report will be distributed through the partnership and led by the WECHU a public communications strategy will be implemented to inform the community of the progress made over the 2024 calendar year.