Health & Wellness, Public Service Announcement

Stop guessing – Drug checking saves lives

July 7, 2023

What’s in your drugs?

As the toxic drug emergency continues unabated, drug checking is one of the ways to find out what’s in your drugs.

In fact, drug checking provides the most accurate information about what is in substances, so people who use drugs can make informed choices about where, when and how much to use.

The service is fast, free and confidential, and is legal at approved sites. Samples can be as small as a grain of rice, and results are typically available within 10 minutes.

The technicians who provide the service are non-judgmental. No matter the test results, we don’t confiscate drugs, and they can be returned to you.

Whether you’re planning to experiment with drugs for the first time, you rely on the illicit supply for pain relief, or use substances regularly and purchase from a familiar source – no matter the reason – we want you to bring in or drop off a sample before you use for testing.

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In this Story…

Getting your drugs checked

Summer festivals that offer drug checking

Drug checking and drug poisoning facts

Getting your drugs checked

Where can I get my drugs checked?

Interior Health has drug checking services in Kamloops, Cranbrook, Nelson, Penticton, Kelowna and Vernon. To find a drug checking location near you, visit drugchecking.ca. To reach an Interior Health Mental Health and Substance Use centre near you, call 310-MHSU.

How do we check your drugs?

Interior Health uses FTIRs (Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy), an instrument that uses infrared light to reliably detect the composition of drugs.

Take home fentanyl test strips are also available in more than 72 locations throughout the Interior region.

Summer festivals that offer drug checking

Several popular summer arts and music festivals here in B.C. that provide drug checking. For example, here in the Southern Interior, both Bass Coast and Shambhala have harm reduction spaces on site where you can test your drugs safely and without judgement. Your drugs won’t be confiscated and can be returned to you.

“We are grateful to be part of the harm reduction teams at this year’s Bass Coast and Shambhala’s festivals,” said Jessica Bridgeman, manager, Sexual Health and Harm Reduction at Interior Health. “Everyone deserves to party safely. Our festival services are discreet and non-judgmental, and are meant to reduce the risks of substance use. We want to normalize access to information, tools and supplies while combatting stigma.”

Drug checking and drug poisoning facts

89 per cent of opioids checked in May 2023 contained benzodiazepines (BC Coroners Service)
Benzodiazepines do not respond to naloxone and create challenges for first responders trying to reverse drug poisonings.
Fentanyl is often present in all opioid-type drugs, from pressed pills like oxycodone and Percocet to “down” and heroin. It is also sometimes found in other drugs as well.
Since 2019, illicit fentanyl and its analogues were involved in more than 85 per cent of illicit drug toxicity deaths. (BC Coroners Service)
Illicit drug toxicity is now the leading cause of death in B.C. for people between the ages of 10 to 59, surpassing homicides, suicides, accidents and natural diseases combined. (BC Coroners Service)