Harm Reduction

Drug Checking

Please note that while drug checking services are not provided by Nova Scotia Health, some community services provide drug testing strips.

Drug testing strips have significant limitations and must be used with caution because they may provide false negatives:

• The accuracy of the test can be influenced by other drugs in the sample. The test may only detect a specific substance and not indicate what other substances are present (e.g., fentanyl test strips may indicate presence of fentanyl but not xylazine, benzos, or other substances).
• Unregulated drugs may not be mixed evenly, so the portion tested may not contain the same amount of drug versus the portion that was consumed.

 At home drug checking with fentanyl test strips (fentanyl, benzo, and xylazine test strips) may be available from Mainline, Northern Healthy Connections Society, Ally Centre for Cape Breton, and Direction 180.