Interior Health says a mobile safe consumption site in Kamloops has been a busy place since it opened nearly two years ago.

In an update to city council, mental health and substance use coordinator for IHA West Debbie Morris says there have been about 10,000 visits to the site since June of 2017.

“Of that, we’ve had just under 1,500 that have been actual consumption visits, where people have actually used the RV to consume their drug of choice, and we have supported them to do that safely and with a good outcome.”

Morris says there have been 37 overdoses at the safe consumption site in Kamloops but zero fatalities.

She says she doesn’t think people using the supervised consumption site in Kamloops are abusing the support.

“I would say really, not necessarily a concern that we have right now, as much as obviously the end goal of that site is to prevent fatal overdose.

“The other piece, as we responded in the room [council chambers], every time we cross paths with a patient or a client, it gives us an opportunity to have a conversation about their use. How we might help them move through that change process and really get connected to treatment. Every opportunity we get, we want to take that.”