Education & Training
Learning Material
OHRN develops online learning opportunities in collaboration with community partners and Drug Culture Consultants with lived and living expertise of drug use.
We provide low-barrier access to our content. Find links and downloads below.
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Online Learning with OHRN
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Past Webinar Recordings
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Connecting: A webinar on new guidance for using harm reduction supplies as engagement tools
May 12, 2021
See more details
Hide detailsTime Commitment
1 hour
Pre-requisites
None.
Related Material
Connecting: A Guide to Using Harm Reduction Supplies as Engagement Tools
Slide Deck – PPTX (8.4MB)
Slide Deck – PDF (2.4MB)
What you will learn
This webinar celebrates the launch of Connecting: A Guide to Using Harm Reduction Supplies as Engagement Tools. We share the story of how the guide was developed and explore concrete ways to use the guide in day-to-day work. Part professional development training, part celebration, this event will be of interest to teams working on the front lines of harm reduction in Ontario.
Connecting has been developed for frontline harm reduction workers, based on the Best Practice Recommendations for Canadian Harm Reduction Programs and focus group consultations across the province. We hope this Guide supports the incredible and ongoing efforts of frontline harm reduction workers who continue to evolve programs and services in their communities.
Agenda
Introduction | Netta Kornberg, Knowledge Exchange Lead, Ontario Harm Reduction Network
Message of Congratulations | Karen Lomax, Overdose Prevention Coordinator, ARCH Guelph
Project Overview | Nadia Zurba, Manager, Ontario Harm Reduction Distribution Program
Voices from the Field | Denise Beaumont, Inventory Analyst, Ontario Harm Reduction Distribution Program
Components of the Guide | Josée Conway, Operations Coordinator, Ontario Harm Reduction Distribution Program
Use Cases Overview | Netta Kornberg, Knowledge Exchange Lead, Ontario Harm Reduction Network
Use Case 1 | Meghanne Hicks, Registered Nurse, Addictions and Mental Health Services, Kingston
Use Case 2 | Talia Storm, Manager of StreetWorks Services, Positive Living Niagara
Conclusion | Nick Boyce, Director, Ontario Harm Reduction Network
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Launch: Harm Reduction Satellite Sites Program Guide
October 26, 2020See more detailsHide detailsTime Commitment
Approximately 90 minutes
Pre-requisites
None.
Related Material
Harm Reduction Satellite Sites Program Guide
Blog: Satellite Sites: Providing harm reduction from the homes of people who use drugs
Evaluation of the Parkdale Peer Satellite Program
Research paper: Practices of care among people who buy, use, and sell drugs in community settings
What you will learn
This webinar marks the launch of the Harm Reduction Satellite Sites Program Guide: A Guide for Operating Harm Reduction Hubs from the Homes of People who Use Drugs. We explore expanding high-impact, low-barrier responses to the overdose crisis in residential and community settings.
The term “satellite sites” is used to refer to informal harm reduction hubs operating out of the homes of people who use drugs. Informally operating in Toronto for over 20 years, these sites offer, at a minimum, access to sterile drug use supplies outside of more formal settings like health centres. Many Satellite sites offer much more than this – including naloxone and overdose response training, safe needle disposal, and referrals to health care services
In this webinar, providers shared their experiences in the hope that it will be helpful for community-based service providers who would like to develop similar programming or explore other models of providing health and harm reduction services to people who use drugs, particularly in residential and other community settings.
This webinar was co-hosted by the Alliance for Healthier Communities and the Ontario Harm Reduction Network and moderated by Dr. Gillian Kolla.
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Drug Use and Harm Reduction During COVID-19
May 8, 2020See more detailsHide detailsTime Commitment
Approximately 90 minutes
Pre-requisites
None.
Related Material
How Ontario harm reduction programs are adapting to COVID-19
Impact of COVID-19 on people who use drugs
Tips for Needle Syringe Programs and Harm Reduction Providers
What you will learn
- Particular risk factors for People Who Use Drugs during COVID-19
- Examples of innovative Ontario harm reduction responses
Co-presented by the Ontario Harm Reduction Network and Evidence Exchange Network/Provincial System Support Program
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Engaging People Who Use Drugs to Build Organizational Capacity
March 6, 2020See more detailsHide detailsTime Commitment
Approximately 90 minutes
Pre-requisites
None
Related Material
Peer engagement principles and best practice BC
Engaging PWUD for Organizational Capacity_OHRN_March 2020
What you will learn
- Key principles and practical tips to meaningfully engage People Who Use Drugs (PWUD)
- Relevant resources to consult on an ongoing basis
- How your organization can begin or improve working with PWUD in policy development, program design, and service delivery
- How involving PWUD can lead to relevant services and greater engagement with service users, while building the capacity of all involved
The webinar is co-facilitated by the Ontario Harm Reduction Network and people with living experience and expertise of drug use.
Cross-Cultural Harm Reduction Training
Dates recorded: August 2020
Resource Downloads
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Cross-Cultural Harm Reduction Training – Part 1: Values, Stigma, Discrimination, and the Impact of Policies on BIPOC Communities
August 11, 2020See more detailsHide detailsTime Commitment
Approximately 120 minutes
Pre-requisites
None
What you will learn
- How we generate values and attitudes about drugs and people that use them
- Different ways stigma is enacted and how it can affect access to and provision of services
- How drug polices specifically intersect with BIPOC communities
Key Themes
- Values and attitudes towards drug use
- Stigma and discrimination
- Impact of drug policies on Black, Indigenous & People of Colour (BIPOC) communities
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Cross-Cultural Harm Reduction Training – Part 2: Drug Use, Harm Reduction, and Working with People Who Use Drugs
August 20, 2020See more detailsHide detailsTime Commitment
Approximately 120 minutes
Pre-requisites
Part 1: Values, Stigma, Discrimination, and the Impact of Policies on BIPOC Communities or relevant experience.
What you will learn
- Think about reasons people may or may not use substances
- Look at the spectrum of use and consider the stages of change
- Learn about the different methods of taking substances and associated benefits and risks
- Examine the philosophy and practice of harm reduction
- Talk briefly about overdose prevention
- Learn about ways to meaningfully include People Who Use Drugs in policy development, program design and service delivery
Key Themes
- Drug/Substance Use 101
- Harm Reduction 101
- Working with People Who Use Drugs
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Cross-Cultural Harm Reduction Training – Part 3: Providing Culturally Appropriate Supports and Safer Spaces
August 26, 2020See more detailsHide detailsTime Commitment
Approximately 120 minutes
Pre-requisites
Part 1: Values, Stigma, Discrimination, and the Impact of Policies on BIPOC Communities and Part 2: Drug Use, Harm Reduction, and Working with People Who Use Drugs, or relevant experience.
What you will learn
- Existing harm reduction programs
- Ways to meaningfully include People Who Use Drugs in policy development, program design and service delivery
- Ways to make services more culturally relevant and appropriate
Trans Awareness: From The Basics to The Beyond
Dates recorded: June 2019
Resource Downloads
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Trans Awareness – Part 1: The Basics
June 21, 2019See more detailsHide detailsTime Commitment
Approximately 120 minutes
Pre-requisites
None
What you will learn
Become more inclusive by understanding terms, definitions, and issues impacting trans and non-binary peoples and communities.
Objectives:
- Learn language inclusive of trans/non-binary people
- Understand the many complex issues trans/non-binary folx face
- Learn skills on how to be a better ally to trans/non-binary communities
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Trans Awareness – Part 2: The Beyond
June 21, 2019See more detailsHide detailsTime Commitment
Approximately 120 minutes
Pre-requisites
Part 1: The Basics or relevant experience
What you will learn
Takes the conversation further with an in-depth look at issues affecting how and why trans and non-binary people access, or do not access services.
Objectives:
- Understand the social determinants of health for trans/non-binary people by examining provincial data on mental health, substance use, and HIV risks
- Develop strategies to reduce barriers to services
- Learn what equipment resources are needed to make your harm reduction services more inclusive
Methamphetamine Series
This webinar has been archived and is no longer available. Please see these resources as alternative learning material:
Effectively supporting people who use methamphetamine by Sanda Kazazic
Gay Men Using Meth (Part 3): A Harm Reduction Approach, Positive Effect Pozcast. Host James Watson interview Nick Boyce, Director, Ontario Harm Reduction Network, and Colin Johnson, Drug Culture Consultant, Ontario Harm Reduction Network.
Crystal Meth Video Series, Wellington Guelph Drug Strategy
Crystal Meth e-Learning Series, St. Stephen's Community House
Harm Reduction Equipment Best Practices
This webinar has been archived and is no longer available. For updated, accessible, and stigma-free information on harm reduction equipment, please check out Connecting: A Guide to Using Harm Reduction Supplies as Engagement Tools.
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Thank you for the relevant information, the knowledge and expertise from your panel. Always beneficial to get the perspective of lived experience and front line staff.
— Methamphetamine: Working with and supporting people who use, Webinar Participant
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Having been given the responsibility of developing a workshop on IDU and best practices for supply distribution, I found the webinar very useful and well developed. What I found the most useful was the many harm reduction recommendations we could give to clients. For example, I never thought of advising a client to abstain from using in a particular vein to provide health care providers with an easier area to set up an I.V. (or administer an I.V. medication).
— Injection Drug Use Supplies and Best Practices Webinar Participant
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Hearing from satellite site workers about the nuances of their work and daily experience. Learning about the logistics of developing and running the programs. Hearing the things that worked, as well as the challenges faced by satellite workers. Hearing about creative ideas of working with people who are usually disregarded in harm reduction work (i.e people who sell drugs) and connecting with communites.
— Satellite Sites Guide Webinar Participants, Speaking on the most valuable parts of the Satellite Sites Webinar
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The importance of helping to form groups and coalitions and not having a single person be your token representative. I also think this presentation validated my observation as a front-line worker, that morning appointments just aren't do-able for a lot of PWUD. In the past, professionals (Social workers, Drs etc.) have implied that this is just laziness (which I obviously disagree with) but now I have the backing of OHRN training saying that it's a best practice 🙂
— Engaging People Who Use Drugs to Build Organizational Capacity Webinar Participant, Speaking on takeaways from the webinar
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Being able to better understand and talk about crystal meth. We don’t hear about it a lot in the North, but I feel better prepared for those times when people do talk about it.
— Methamphetamine Webinar Participant