About the BCCSU

An estimated one in every five Canadians will be impacted by substance use and related harms in their lifetime. That's more than six million people. For the majority of them, the health system will fail to meet their needs. For those without an addiction who use substances, especially unregulated substances, policies put them in harm’s way every day.

The BC Centre on Substance Use was established in 2017 to provide a centre of expertise to help meet those needs. We aim to be highly collaborative and coordinated in our approach. We place emphasis on research to generate evidence-informed strategies, while harnessing clinical guidance and training to ensure that evidence is implemented into clinical practice in every part of the province.

Research —Leading an innovative multidisciplinary program of research, monitoring, evaluation and quality improvement activities to guide health system improvements in the area of substance use.

Education and Training—Strengthening addiction medicine education activities across disciplines, academic institutions and health authorities, and training the next generation of interdisciplinary leaders in addiction medicine.

Clinical Care Guidance—Developing and helping implement evidence-based clinical practice guidelines, treatment pathways and other practice support documents.

Governance Overview

The BCCSU is an academic centre housed within Providence Health Care (PHC) and Providence Research, and is a University of British Columbia (UBC) Faculty of Medicine-affiliated centre focused on substance use and addiction medicine. The BCCSU is also a research centre affiliated with the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute (VCHRI).

The BCCSU is supported by the Province of BC through a shared cost arrangement with a mission to “provide provincial leadership in substance use and addiction research, education and clinical care guidance and to seamlessly integrate these pillars to help shape a comprehensive, connected system of treatment and care that reaches all British Columbians.”

BC Centre on Substance Use

400-1045 Howe St, Vancouver, BC V6Z 2A9


E: [email protected] | T: (778) 945-7616 | F: (604) 428-5183

24/7 Addiction Clinician Support Line: (778) 945-7619

Online Addiction Medicine Diploma: [email protected].


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