Impact of Providence’s Overdose Prevention Center on Drug Users

A nonprofit is opening a facility where people can use drugs under medical supervision. It also offers connections to drug treatment

More than 400 people died of a drug overdose in Rhode Island in 2023.
More than 400 people died of a drug overdose in Rhode Island in 2023.
Jeremy Bernfeld / The Public’s Radio
Share
More than 400 people died of a drug overdose in Rhode Island in 2023.
More than 400 people died of a drug overdose in Rhode Island in 2023.
Jeremy Bernfeld / The Public’s Radio
Impact of Providence’s Overdose Prevention Center on Drug Users
Copy

Jason first started using fentanyl a few years ago, when the pandemic threw his life off balance. By now, he’s used to hiding his drug use.

“You duck into, like, an alley, or behind a car or somewhere where no one’s going to see you,” he said.

The Public’s Radio is only using Jason’s first name because he uses illegal drugs. He knows that using alone, in tucked-away places, makes it even riskier to use a drug as dangerous as fentanyl.

“When no one sees you, no one’s going to find you if you overdose,” he said. “And, you know, I’ve lost a few friends, and no one’s found them.”

That’s the problem a new facility is hoping to solve.

This story was reported by The Public’s Radio. You can read the entire story here.

Quarterback Drake Maye and the New England Patriots take on the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday at Levi’s Stadium
As Rhode Island struggles to retain CNAs and home health aides, an educator at Salve Regina University is calling on local communities and higher education institutions to become more involved in the caregiving process
These are some of the many free events for kids and adults across the city’s nine community libraries – from a kazoo workshop, to the Providence Children’s Film Festival, to a cozy mystery book club
Protesters briefly blocked streets around the Rhode Island Statehouse as part of a national day of action that called for a general strike
The debate about ICE rages while the decades-long struggle to boost RI’s economy lurks in the shadows
‘He is now resting comfortably and finally warm, which makes all the difference’