Taija McLuckie: Episode 5: Exposure to Death & Trauma Continued

In this episode, you'll hear Tajia McLuckie tell Caitlin Burritt and Ashley White about the recent passing of a friend due to a fatal overdose. She received the news the morning she was supposed to give a presentation about harm reduction to Island Health. Taija describes how supportive her current work environment is and how important it is that peers and people who use drugs feel valued instead of stigmatised. Glossary:Brave COOP:  The cooperative of people responsible for creating the Brave SensorBrave Sensor: An Overdose Detection tool for public bathroomsCAT: Community Action TeamDecriminalization: A three year pilot project which began on January 31, 2023,which exempts adults carrying small amounts of illicit drugs from being subject to arrest or criminal charges.Downtown Eastside: The Downtown Eastside is a neighbourhood in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, known for having a large unhoused population, many of whom are affected by substance use disorder.Mobile Response Team: An outreach team in Taija’s community, created to support frontline workers during the Opioid CrisisMoms Stop The Harm: A network of Canadian families impacted by substance-use-related harms and deaths, which advocates to end substance use related stigma, harms and death.NA: Narcotics Anonymous Naloxone: A medicine that rapidly reverses an opioid overdose.OAT: Opioid agonist therapyVIHA: Vancouver Island Health Authority (also referred to as Island Health)This episode was recorded on November 23, 2022.