A local nurse who leads the Street Connections patrol

It's been five years since Jenny Russell began patrolling Winnipeg with the Street Connections Van, an initiative of the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority, and it's been one of the best decisions of her life.

“People come to me for help,” Russell said.

“Relationship is the greatest thing to be in a community because it creates trust.”

Russell and his colleague run the van every Monday to Saturday from 6pm to 11pm. It works with vulnerable Winnipeg residents, distributing harm reduction tools and helping those who face barriers to accessing health care.

“My role is to support people who need medical care with sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections, so any type of infection that is notifiable to public health,” Russell said.

Glass pipes, needles and harm reduction tools like naloxone have become everyday items he distributes on his routes.

“I think right now our bubble pipes — which are the glass pipes that we distribute and that we give to our partners — we seem to be running out of them quite often,” Russell said.

“It's probably the first thing people come to the van to look for us.”

She later decided to become a nurse and felt that being a nurse was a great way to serve the community. The relationships she forms at work connect with Russell on a personal level, and she reflects on her own life experiences.

“I don't think I was at my best when I was younger, so it was really important for me to bring up people so that I could show up when I needed them,” Russell said.

The van continues to be an important resource for organizations in the community. The Siloam Mission partners with Street Connections for a weekly needle cleanup. Having partnerships creates a safe and active community.

“So one of the things that we do at Siloam Mission, and Street Connections does really well, is create a triangle of trust between people that they already know and that they know care about us like they do here,” Tessa Blakey Whitecloud said. Superintendent of Siloam Mission.

“Most importantly, we're going to deliver services to people where they are, you know, waiting for them to work with these systems that may be too traumatic for them to access services.”

Russell said when she celebrates Indigenous Nurses Day, it's a reminder that Indigenous representation can lead to better support for Indigenous patients.

“Public health has positions for Indigenous people, so I think it's very important,” Russell said.

“We're on the right track, we just have to continue to build that workforce.”

National Nursing Week continues through Sunday, May 12.