Alissa M Greer
Biographic Data
| ID | 5513735 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Alissa M Greer |
| GIVEN NAMES | Alissa M |
| FAMILY NAME | Greer |
| SIGNATURE | GREER A M |
| AFFILIATIONS | Simon Fraser University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-2571-9690 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 23 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 4 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 23 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2015 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
Negotiating drug use and work
BACKGROUND: People who use drugs are embedded in complex systems and policy settings. In this study, we investigated how construction workers who use drugs negotiated their subject positions while navigating social and work demands in the context of British Columbia's recent decriminalization policy, which aimed to reduce stigma and increase access to health and social services. METHODS: Using poststructural interview analysis, we analyzed the 't…
Doubts and disconnection
Findings highlight the need for coordinated health services investments and anti-stigma training. Ongoing engagement between policy makers and police is critical to support policy implementation and mitigate premature conclusions about the policy's effectiveness
Public drug use, policing, and the limits of decriminalization in British Columbia
In January 2023, British Columbia implemented a province-wide decriminalization policy for simple drug possession that aimed to reduce criminal penalties for people who use drugs. However, the policy emerged alongside intense public and political scrutiny of visible drug use which led to new restrictions on public consumption. This study uses a mixed-methods approach that draws on quantitative data from the 2024 Harm Reduction Client Survey (N = …
Police encounters with people who use drugs during decriminalisation in British Columbia, Canada
Background On 31 January 2023, the Canadian Province of British Columbia (BC) decriminalised personal possession of certain illegal drugs up to 2.5 g. By removing criminal sanctions, this policy shift aimed to improve the nature of police interactions and reduce the surveillance of people who use drugs and marginalised sub-groups.Methods We employed a mixed-methods design, combining survey data from harm reduction service users in 2022 (n = 503) …
‘We are the first responders’
Aims Peers, i.e. people with lived/living experience of substance use, are at the forefront of harm reduction initiatives in British Columbia, yet they often lack recognition for their contributions. This study aims to understand the role of peers in overdose response settings and their experiences interacting with emergency service providers (ESPs) within the context of the Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act (GSDOA).Methods Telephone interviews we…
Awareness and knowledge of drug decriminalization among people who use drugs in British Columbia
Given that decriminalization in British Columbia is a new and landmark reform, and that the success of decriminalization and its benefits may be undermined by poor awareness and knowledge of it, efforts to share information, increase understanding, and empower the community, may be required to promote its implementation and benefits for the community
The decriminalization of illicit drugs in British Columbia
This evaluation will draw on implementation science research practices to evaluate and understand the full impacts of this novel drug policy experiment. Results will be widely disseminated through manuscripts, reports, presentations, and infographics, which will be adapted and tailored for specific audiences. The protocol identifies several anticipated challenges and limitations. This evaluation's evidence-based findings will be poised to offer p…
Police officers’ perceptions of their role at overdose events
Introduction The Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act, a federal law enacted in Canada in 2017, aims to increase bystander response to overdoses by offering legal protection for arrests related to simple possession at the scene of an overdose. As this legislation suggests, a shift has occurred to view overdose events as a medical issue, constituting a shift in the role of police officers. Our study aimed to uncover the role police perceive for themse…
Factors contributing to frequent police contact among young people
There is increasing recognition and attention towards the patterns of police encounters with citizens. In this study, we examine the determinants of being stopped and questioned by the police among a heterogenous sample of adolescents and young adults, who were either people who use drugs and a comparison group, in three non-metropolitan areas of British Columbia, Canada. We conducted bivariate and multivariate analyses to identify the unique var…
There are solutions and I think we're still working in the problem”
Our findings are pertinent in light of many jurisdictions across the world considering dejure decriminalization, including BC and Vancouver. The GSDOA and associated limitations that emerged in our evaluation can serve to guide jurisdictions implementing or amending dejure decriminalization policies
Simple possession as a ‘tool’
Event-level outcomes of police interactions with young people in three non-metropolitan cities across British Columbia, Canada
Police officers’ knowledge, understanding and implementation of the Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act in BC, Canada
Effective education for law enforcement, including the dissemination of information beyond email, is needed to improve officers' awareness and understanding of the GSDOA. Given officers' use of discretion when applying the GSDOA, greater legal reforms, such as de jure decriminalization, may be required to fully protect persons at an overdose from simple possession for controlled substances
Police discretion to charge young people who use drugs prior to cannabis legalization in British Columbia, Canada
Introduction: Normalization theory posits a process where drug use is socially accommodated in society. We examine the extent of and factors related to police decision to charge young people who use drugs prior to cannabis legalization in Canada in 2018 and situate these findings within normalization theory.Methods: In the Youth Experiences with Police study, young people (aged 16–30 years) who use drugs from three cities in British Columbia, Can…
“It's an emotional roller coaster… But sometimes it's fucking awesome”
Despite the frequent hardships and loss that accompany overdose response work, experiential workers identified important aspects that give their work meaning. These aspects of their work may help to protect workers from the emotional harms associated with stressful work as well as the stigma of substance use. Recognizing the importance of experiential work and its role in the lives of PWUD can help inform and strengthen organizational supports
It's like super structural” – Overdose experiences of youth who use drugs and police in three non-metropolitan cities across British Columbia
Harm reduction and the opioid crisis
It’s about bloody time”
Peer engagement barriers and enablers
Participant, peer and Peep
This project offers a unique approach to engaging people who use illicit substances and demonstrates how participation is an important endeavor that improves the relevance, capacity, and quality of research. Lessons learned in this project can be applied to future community-based research with people who use illicit substances or other marginalized groups and/or participatory settings
Peer engagement in harm reduction strategies and services
Recommendations from this evaluation can be applied to other peer engagement initiatives in decision-making settings to improve relationships between peers and professionals and to ensure programs and policies are relevant and equitable
Collaborative transition to a methadone formulation change in British Columbia, Canada
Drug quality assessment practices and communication of drug alerts among people who use drugs
Drug quality assessment practices and communication of drug alerts among people who use drugs
Peer engagement in harm reduction strategies and services
Recommendations from this evaluation can be applied to other peer engagement initiatives in decision-making settings to improve relationships between peers and professionals and to ensure programs and policies are relevant and equitable
Collaborative transition to a methadone formulation change in British Columbia, Canada
Participant, peer and Peep
This project offers a unique approach to engaging people who use illicit substances and demonstrates how participation is an important endeavor that improves the relevance, capacity, and quality of research. Lessons learned in this project can be applied to future community-based research with people who use illicit substances or other marginalized groups and/or participatory settings
Harm reduction and the opioid crisis
It’s about bloody time”
Peer engagement barriers and enablers
Police discretion to charge young people who use drugs prior to cannabis legalization in British Columbia, Canada
Introduction: Normalization theory posits a process where drug use is socially accommodated in society. We examine the extent of and factors related to police decision to charge young people who use drugs prior to cannabis legalization in Canada in 2018 and situate these findings within normalization theory.Methods: In the Youth Experiences with Police study, young people (aged 16–30 years) who use drugs from three cities in British Columbia, Can…
“It's an emotional roller coaster… But sometimes it's fucking awesome”
Despite the frequent hardships and loss that accompany overdose response work, experiential workers identified important aspects that give their work meaning. These aspects of their work may help to protect workers from the emotional harms associated with stressful work as well as the stigma of substance use. Recognizing the importance of experiential work and its role in the lives of PWUD can help inform and strengthen organizational supports
It's like super structural” – Overdose experiences of youth who use drugs and police in three non-metropolitan cities across British Columbia
Event-level outcomes of police interactions with young people in three non-metropolitan cities across British Columbia, Canada
Police officers’ knowledge, understanding and implementation of the Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act in BC, Canada
Effective education for law enforcement, including the dissemination of information beyond email, is needed to improve officers' awareness and understanding of the GSDOA. Given officers' use of discretion when applying the GSDOA, greater legal reforms, such as de jure decriminalization, may be required to fully protect persons at an overdose from simple possession for controlled substances
Factors contributing to frequent police contact among young people
There is increasing recognition and attention towards the patterns of police encounters with citizens. In this study, we examine the determinants of being stopped and questioned by the police among a heterogenous sample of adolescents and young adults, who were either people who use drugs and a comparison group, in three non-metropolitan areas of British Columbia, Canada. We conducted bivariate and multivariate analyses to identify the unique var…
There are solutions and I think we're still working in the problem”
Our findings are pertinent in light of many jurisdictions across the world considering dejure decriminalization, including BC and Vancouver. The GSDOA and associated limitations that emerged in our evaluation can serve to guide jurisdictions implementing or amending dejure decriminalization policies
Simple possession as a ‘tool’
Police officers’ perceptions of their role at overdose events
Introduction The Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act, a federal law enacted in Canada in 2017, aims to increase bystander response to overdoses by offering legal protection for arrests related to simple possession at the scene of an overdose. As this legislation suggests, a shift has occurred to view overdose events as a medical issue, constituting a shift in the role of police officers. Our study aimed to uncover the role police perceive for themse…
‘We are the first responders’
Aims Peers, i.e. people with lived/living experience of substance use, are at the forefront of harm reduction initiatives in British Columbia, yet they often lack recognition for their contributions. This study aims to understand the role of peers in overdose response settings and their experiences interacting with emergency service providers (ESPs) within the context of the Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act (GSDOA).Methods Telephone interviews we…
Awareness and knowledge of drug decriminalization among people who use drugs in British Columbia
Given that decriminalization in British Columbia is a new and landmark reform, and that the success of decriminalization and its benefits may be undermined by poor awareness and knowledge of it, efforts to share information, increase understanding, and empower the community, may be required to promote its implementation and benefits for the community
The decriminalization of illicit drugs in British Columbia
This evaluation will draw on implementation science research practices to evaluate and understand the full impacts of this novel drug policy experiment. Results will be widely disseminated through manuscripts, reports, presentations, and infographics, which will be adapted and tailored for specific audiences. The protocol identifies several anticipated challenges and limitations. This evaluation's evidence-based findings will be poised to offer p…
Negotiating drug use and work
BACKGROUND: People who use drugs are embedded in complex systems and policy settings. In this study, we investigated how construction workers who use drugs negotiated their subject positions while navigating social and work demands in the context of British Columbia's recent decriminalization policy, which aimed to reduce stigma and increase access to health and social services. METHODS: Using poststructural interview analysis, we analyzed the 't…
Doubts and disconnection
Findings highlight the need for coordinated health services investments and anti-stigma training. Ongoing engagement between policy makers and police is critical to support policy implementation and mitigate premature conclusions about the policy's effectiveness
Public drug use, policing, and the limits of decriminalization in British Columbia
In January 2023, British Columbia implemented a province-wide decriminalization policy for simple drug possession that aimed to reduce criminal penalties for people who use drugs. However, the policy emerged alongside intense public and political scrutiny of visible drug use which led to new restrictions on public consumption. This study uses a mixed-methods approach that draws on quantitative data from the 2024 Harm Reduction Client Survey (N = …
Police encounters with people who use drugs during decriminalisation in British Columbia, Canada
Background On 31 January 2023, the Canadian Province of British Columbia (BC) decriminalised personal possession of certain illegal drugs up to 2.5 g. By removing criminal sanctions, this policy shift aimed to improve the nature of police interactions and reduce the surveillance of people who use drugs and marginalised sub-groups.Methods We employed a mixed-methods design, combining survey data from harm reduction service users in 2022 (n = 503) …
HIV, Drug Use, Sexual Risk (19 works) · Medicine (16 works) · Opioid Use Disorder Treatment (13 works) · Political science (12 works) · Psychology (11 works) · Criminology (9 works) · Poison control (9 works) · Sociology (9 works) · Harm reduction (8 works) · Law (8 works)