UPDATE: Nurses told to permit drug use in Quesnel hospital in leaked Northern Health memo

UPDATE: A statement from Northern Health has been added to this story.

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. – Nurses have been told to allow patients to use drugs like fentanyl, methamphetamine, and heroin in their hospital rooms, according to a recently leaked Northern Health memo.

The memo was sent to workers at G.R. Baker Memorial Hospital in Quesnel on July 7th, 2023, and says nurses shouldn’t search patients’ belongings, saying doing so is illegal and could lead to them facing charges. 

It also says nurses shouldn’t call police, except for “gunshot wounds and stabbings and related concerns.”

Other instructions in the memo include not taking patients’ personal items, “even if there is a knife or something considered a weapon less than [four inches] long,” and not restricting visitors if a patient is suspected of bringing in drugs. 

Patients who vape, meanwhile, should be told to do so in designated outdoor smoking areas.

“We are not law enforcement,” the memo reads. “We have never been responsible for ensuring patients/clients are not in possession of unlawful substances.”

It also says substance abuse and possession aren’t problems that nurses need to manage or address, instead saying they should focus on “the associated behaviours.”  

The BC United Party leaked the memo on Wednesday. 

Shadow Minister for Health, Seniors Services and Long-Term Care Shirley Bond, a party member, discussed the memo during a question period after it leaked, saying it was indicative of problems with the B.C. government’s drug decriminalization policy.

In an email to Energeticcity.ca, Northern Health provided a statement saying it has policies for dealing with patients who possess controlled substances as well as weapons in the workplace.

The health authority also says the leaked memo predates those policies.

“Northern Health continues to work with and gather feedback from nursing, medical and other staff in hospitals and other program areas to address concerns related to the safety and security of staff, patients and visitors,” the statement reads.

Energeticcity.ca also contacted MLA Dan Davies and the BC Nurses’ Union for comment, neither of whom responded by publication.

View the leaked memo below: