Harm Reduction Community Care Worker 0.40 FTE/ Drop-in Facilitator 0.20 FTE

Internal/External Posting

One (1) Short-Term Contract Position (22.5 hours per week)
* Estimated Contract Start Date – ASAP * Contract End Date – September 30, 2025 *

Street Health is a community-based agency providing innovative physical and mental health programs and advocacy to homeless and insecurely housed individuals in downtown Toronto for over 30 years.  Street Health, a not-for-profit organization located within the downtown-east neighborhood of Toronto, works to improve the health and wellbeing of people who are homeless and under-housed by addressing the social determinants of health. Our organization provides services in the areas of innovative nursing, mental health, harm reduction, Overdose prevention, Safer Supply, outreach, identification replacement programs, and through advocacy, research, and education.

This posting consists of 2 components (positions) within our harm reduction team for a total of 22.5 hours per week; a Harm Reduction Community Care Worker for 15 hours per week, and a Harm Reduction Drop-in Facilitator for 7.5 hours per week.

The Downtown East Harm Reduction Community Care Project is a City of Toronto funded project and the program focuses on training locally based community members to conduct community cleanup of discarded harm reduction litter in their respective neighbourhoods and promoting neighbourhood safety for all. This position will also facilitate late afternoon and evening harm reduction drop-ins and educational activities, monitoring safety spaces within the premises, respond to drug overdoses, and promote naloxone training and use among project participants.

Responsibilities of the Community Care Worker include, but may not be limited to:

•       Work outside for 4 to 5 hours consecutively; scan areas for discarded harm reduction supplies; dispose of them safely;

•       Provide training of safe disposal of used and discarded harm reduction supplies, overdose response and prevention including Naloxone; distribute naloxone kits;

•       Respond to discarded harm reduction supply clean-up requests from neighborhood business owners and apartment buildings;

•       Distribute safer drug use kits and safer sex supplies; occasionally participate in kit-making activities;

•       Attend skill building workshops and training (payment is covered by the project funding); required training includes WHMIS, crisis intervention and de-escalation, Reconciliation and more;

•       Keep records of the number of items collected during a shift for data entry;

•       Participate in regular supervision and harm reduction meetings, and agency events;

•       Provide support for any COVID-19 related initiatives at Street Health;

•       Work in tandem with Harm Reduction Outreach Teams at partner agencies;

Responsibilities of the Drop-in Facilitator include, but may not be limited to:

•       Respond to overdoses and facilitate educational activities and promote use of naloxone among participants;

•       Provide the distribution of harm reduction supplies and support, overdose education and training and referrals as required;

•       Keep consistent, accurate and well-organized statistical information and notes after each shift;

•       Attend advisory committee meetings, team meetings and coalition meetings as needed;

•       Provide a safe and welcoming space for clients accessing drop-in groups;

•       Advocate for clients in the areas of access to housing, health services and income supports, legal issues and more as time permits;

•       Monitor hard to reach spaces within the premises such as stairwells and washrooms;

•       Attend skill building workshops and training (payment is covered by the project funding); required training includes WHMIS, crisis intervention and de-escalation, Reconciliation and more;

•       Participate in regular supervision and harm reduction meetings, and agency events;

•       Promote the mission, vision and values of Street Health; and

•       All other duties as may be assigned within the scope of this position.

Qualifications & Requirements Community Care Worker: 

•       Lived and/or living experience reflecting the communities we work with including but not limited to substance use, sex work, HIV/AIDS, and homelessness.

•       Knowledge and understanding of social justice and harm reduction, and transmission of HIV & HCV or willingness to learn.

•       Work within an anti-oppressive, anti-racist, harm reduction, trans-inclusive approach; ability to perform work with a drug and sex-positive perspective.

•       Experience with, or willingness to learn to promote safer drug use and safest disposal practices.

•       Familiar with the Downtown East Side community and work towards building trust with those who use substances, perform sex work and/or, and live homeless without secured housing.

•       Knowledge of and experience working with people from marginalized communities.

•       Ability and willingness to follow workplace policies and procedures.

•       Ability to work independently and as part of a team; committed to the work.

•       Willingness to build workplace boundaries and ability to maintain them while working in the community.

•       Ability to carry out duties independently and as part of a team.

•       Valid CPR certification or ability to obtain certification within the first 3 months of employment.

•       Successful police services Vulnerable Sector Screening Check.

Qualifications & Requirements Drop-in Facilitator: 

•       Lived and/or living experience reflecting the communities we work with including but not limited to drug use, sex work, HIV/AIDS, and people experiencing homelessness.

•       Knowledge and understanding of social justice and harm reduction, and transmission of HIV & HCV or willingness to learn.

•       Knowledge of the neighbourhood and community resources.

•       Experience providing crisis intervention and overdose prevention strategies.

•       Work within an anti-oppressive, anti-racist, harm reduction, trans-inclusive approach; ability to perform work with a drug and sex-positive perspective.

•       Familiar with the Downtown East Side community and work towards building trust with those who use drugs, perform sex work and/or, and individuals without secured housing.

•       Knowledge of and experience working with people from marginalized communities.

•       Ability and willingness to follow workplace policies and procedures; willingness to work independently and as part of a team; committed to the work.

•       Willingness to build workplace boundaries and ability to maintain them while working in the community.

•       Valid CPR certification or ability to obtain certification within the first 3 months of employment.

•       Successful completion of a police services Vulnerable Sector Screening Check.

Don’t meet every single qualification? If you are intrigued and excited about this role but your experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in this job posting, we encourage you to apply anyway. You might just be the right candidate we have been searching for to join our team! Research has shown that people of colour, women and members of other equity deserving groups are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. Street Health is committed to building a diverse and authentic organization and we welcome your application.

Position Type:                         Part-Time, Contract, Bargaining Unit

Salary:                                     $26.00 per hour

Work Hours:                            22.5 hours per week

Work Location:                        338 Dundas Street East, Toronto, ON, M5A 2A1

Reports to:                               Manager, Harm Reduction Programs

Posting Date:                           Thursday June 19, 2025

Application Deadline:             Tuesday July 1, 2025

Application Method:                Please submit a cover letter and resume by 5:00 p.m., on Tuesday July 1, 2025, to .

Please quote HRTemp_1125 in the subject line of the email.

Street Health is committed to diversity, equity & inclusion and developing a workforce that is reflective of the communities and clients that we work with. We strongly encourage applications from members of equity deserving groups including but not limited to; people with lived and/or living experience, Black people, Indigenous Peoples, racialized communities, LGBTQ2SIA+ people, people with disabilities, and people with marginalized identities.

Street Health is committed to providing accessible employment practices in compliance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA). Applicants are asked to make accommodation requests by email to and include the subject term ‘Accessibility’, or via telephone to 416-921-8668 ext. 228. Street Health will make every effort to ensure that reasonable accommodation requests are available throughout the recruitment process.

All candidates offered a position at Street Health must be fully vaccinated according to Street Health’s COVID-19 Vaccination Policy, Nov 2021, and proof of vaccination is required as a condition of employment.

Street Health will comply with its Human Rights obligations and accommodate employees who are legally entitled to accommodation.