Harm reduction housing programs often struggle to balance individual and community impacts of drug-related harms in their buildings, all while protecting frontline workers from compassion fatigue and burnout. How does a housing agency avoid the obviously harmful practice of eviction for a tenant who is disruptive or threatening in a building? How does onsite support staff meaningfully act to prevent fatal overdose among its residents who use drugs?
NASTAD hired Facente Consulting to delve into the complexities of issues related to harm reduction and housing and synthesize this information for frontline workers. The project included a thorough literature review, highlighting harm reduction and housing models meant to address high utilizers of emergency services, chaotic alcohol consumption, and the fentanyl-driven overdose crisis. We also interviewed researchers and harm reduction housing practitioners, using their voices and models to create a two-page summary of best practices and an interactive, web-based video series.