As a part of a larger strategy to address overdose fatalities in Philadelphia, the Office of Public Safety’s Overdose Response Unit collaborated with multiple city agencies to develop a door-to-door overdose prevention canvassing program.

The goal of the program is to use community messengers to bring resources directly to residents at home. ORU contracts with the Office of Community Empowerment and Opportunity to deliver life-saving resources to neighborhoods experiencing increases in fatal overdoses. Canvassers knock on doors to engage with residents about increasing overdoses in their neighborhood and distribute resources such as: the Philly Help Book, free naloxone (Narcan), fentanyl test strips, and a brief and accessible training on how to use these tools.