Harm Reduction Action Team (HRAT)

Opioid Overdose ReportThe Harm Reduction Action Team (HRAT) exists to promote and raise awareness of opioid-related harms in Haldimand and Norfolk with a harm reduction approach. It aims to provide a forum to bring key stakeholders together to discuss emerging issues in the community, facilitate resource sharing, plan and implement community education initiatives, and promote harm reduction services and resources within Haldimand and Norfolk.

Mission:	To encourage communication and collaboration with community stakeholders across the four pillars of prevention, enforcement, harm reduction, and treatment in order to reduce the burden of opioid related social and health issues in our community.
Vision:	A community in which the harms associated with opioids are well understood and a multi-sectoral, evidence-based approach is adopted with a realization of benefits as well as harms for individuals, families, communities and society.

VALUES

• Collaboration: We are committed to actively engaging and working with organizations, groups, and individuals to achieve positive change.
• Client-centered: We are committed to working with those with lived and front-line experience to develop and implement strategies to address the opioid crisis.
• Data Sharing: We are committed to collecting and sharing relevant data in order to address this issue to the best of the action team’s combined ability.
• Open and transparent communication: We value conversations that are honest, inclusive and productive.
• Evidence-based action: We value taking action based on what we know from: people with lived experience, service providers, work in other communities, best-practices, applied and academic research and evaluation processes.

The HRAT is made up of representatives from:

• Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit
• Health and Social Service agencies
• Emergency Services
• OPP
• The Local Health Integration Network
• Local hospitals
• Addiction and mental health service providers
• Community through peer representation
• Health care providers (physicians, nurses, etc.)
• Pharmacies
• Children’s services
• Probation and parole
• First Nation’s Health Services

If you are interested in joining, receiving information about, or going to events hosted by HRAT, contact [email protected].