The clinic\u2019s model, he says, is built around meeting people where they\u2019re at, reducing prejudice\u00a0and helping individuals stabilize their health, while trying\u00a0to rebuild trust in the health-care system\u00a0and work toward their own goals at their own pace.<\/p>\n
![\"20260618pharmasavearrowmedicalrb001\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20260618pharmasavearrowmedicalrb001.jpeg;w=960.jpeg\"\/)
\nPharmasave Arrow Medical is located at 79 Dunlop St. W., in downtown Barrie. | Raymond Bowe\/BarrieToday files
<\/p>\n
Inside the clinics<\/p>\n
Within the two Barrie clinics,\u00a0one located on Dunlop Street West and the second on Essa Road,\u00a0Fletcher says the focus is primarily on opioid\u2011use disorder, though the team treats \u201cfull\u2011spectrum addictions,\u201d including alcohol use and\u00a0stimulants such as cocaine,\u00a0crystal meth\u00a0and cannabis.<\/p>\n
The clinics are entirely walk-in, with no appointments required.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have nursing staff who will take their time and do an initial assessment with the patient, go through their whole history,\u00a0utilize the patient’s previous records and hospital visits and blood work and all that’s been done in the past to get a more holistic picture of the person,” Fletcher says.\u00a0<\/p>\n
From there, staff sit down with patients to talk through next steps. He says that conversation can include harm\u2011reduction supports, psychosocial options such as counselling or group involvement, and, for most people, medication which could include methadone or suboxone.<\/p>\n
Because many patients are\u00a0high-risk for infectious diseases, staff screen for hepatitis C and other conditions and coordinate whatever follow\u2011up care is needed, says Fletcher. He notes\u00a0this kind of care is especially important because many patients have had difficult or traumatic experiences with the health-care system in the past.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere could be a lot of mistrust that\u2019s built up over years of the health-care system,” he says.\u00a0“There (can) be a lot of generational trauma for certain patients, especially a lot of my Indigenous patients over generations of residential schooling in the 60s Scoop and of how the government and the health-care system has treated them.\u201d<\/p>\n
The team works hard to engage people who may have avoided care for years, Fletcher adds.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s amazing when we can get them involved with the health-care system and try to build some of that trust over appointments after appointments,\u201d he said, noting that the clinics often act as a first point of contact for people who haven\u2019t been connected to the healthcare system in years.<\/p>\n
![\"07282026ncarrowmedicalessa\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/07282026ncarrowmedicalessa.jpg;w=960.jpeg\"\/)
\nA second Arrow Medical clinic is located at 21 Essa Rd., in Barrie. | Nikki Cole\/BarrieToday
<\/p>\n
How treatment begins<\/p>\n
Treatment options are always individualized, shaped by what each person wants in that moment, says Fletcher, who explained that medications fall under opioid agonist therapy (OAT) \u2014 a medical treatment for opioid addiction using long\u2011acting, prescribed medications like methadone, buprenorphine\/naloxone\u00a0or slow\u2011release oral morphine.<\/p>\n
The physiology of opioid use helps explain why these medications are effective, he adds.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn broad strokes, what we find is when you first start using, it often leads to euphoria,\u201d Fletcher says.<\/p>\n
Over time, substance use shifts from ‘chasing’ that feeling to avoiding the crash, he says.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt very quickly changes from chasing euphoria to \u2026 fending off dysphoria. How do I make myself not feel terrible anymore?\u201d<\/p>\n
That shift happens because the body develops dependence, and when a person attempts to stop, they will experience severe withdrawal symptoms.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s like the worst flu of your life \u2026 your nose is running, your eyes are watering, vomiting, diarrhea, nausea, muscle aches, goosebumps. You can\u2019t stop yawning. You feel like you\u2019re crawling out of your skin \u2026 you\u2019re perspiring like crazy. You just feel awful.\u201d<\/p>\n
OAT medications address that directly, he says.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat our medications do, one part of it is to take away all those withdrawal symptoms,\u201d Fletcher says.<\/p>\n
And, because they\u2019re long\u2011acting, they also help take away the desire and the craving to use opiates, as well as reduce overdose risk and lower the likelihood of criminal\u2011justice involvement \u2014 a major concern for many patients, he adds.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou feel that awfulness within 30 minutes. People will do whatever they can to not feel that way and sometimes that means turning to illegal means to get that, and these medications can take that away and therefore decrease involvement in the criminal justice system,” Fletcher says.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He says the evidence behind OAT is clear.<\/p>\n
\u201cVery simply put, we have very good evidence for many years \u2026 that this decreases the risk of dying,\u201d Fletcher says. \u201cAnd there aren\u2019t many medicines \u2026 that we can say decrease the risk of dying.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meeting people where they\u2019re at<\/p>\n
When asked why \u201cmeeting people where they\u2019re at\u201d is so central to the work they do, Fletcher says the idea is at the heart of harm reduction.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you distill what harm reduction is \u2026 simply put it\u2019s exactly that: meeting people where they\u2019re at,\u201d he says. \u201cWhat is that person\u2019s goal? And what can we do to help them achieve that goal?\u201d<\/p>\n
Fletcher says that approach guides how he and his staff interact with patients, assists in shaping conversations around what individuals want, what they\u2019re ready for, and what supports can help them move toward those goals, all without imposing expectations or judgment.<\/p>\n
Meeting people where they\u2019re at also means understanding the realities that currently shape their lives, he says,\u00a0whether they\u2019re unhoused, have never engaged with the health-care system\u00a0or are carrying significant trauma.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere might be all this trauma, whatever that might be, so how can we help identify what those goals are and work towards that even if that goal was not abstinence,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
Abstinence is often treated as the \u201conly acceptable outcome,\u201d adds Fletcher, even though many people aren\u2019t ready for it.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like often we kind of have this connotation that abstinence is the way forward and has to be the way that we have to go,\u201d he says. \u201cWhen we meet people where they\u2019re at, we see where they are at this point in time and give them the autonomy to make these decisions for themselves and prioritize that self\u2011determination and operate within that framework.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meaningful progress doesn\u2019t always look like stopping use, the doctor notes.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are\u00a0a lot of ways that people can make fantastic changes that doesn\u2019t necessarily mean they have to be abstinent,\u201d he says, pointing to patients who stabilize on higher doses of methadone while continuing to use fentanyl because they\u2019re not ready to stop.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven though they\u2019re not abstinent, it\u2019s not a treatment failure,” Fletcher says.\u00a0“They\u2019re not ready to make that last jump, but we\u2019re able to do all these other things at the same time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Misconceptions\u00a0around addiction<\/p>\n
Fletcher says\u00a0one of the biggest misconceptions about addiction is also the simplest: \u201cJust because you have an addiction doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019re a bad person,” he says.<\/p>\n
Society often treats substance use as a moral failing, he adds, and that belief is simply not accurate.<\/p>\n
That discrimination, he says, is often absorbed by the people who are struggling.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe patient often internalizes it and it\u2019s heartbreaking,\u201d says Fletcher. \u201cFor example, with alcohol we see changes in the brain that happen, but you don\u2019t realize it. And you think, ‘why am I not strong enough? Why can\u2019t I just stop? I know I want to, but I can\u2019t. There\u2019s something wrong with me?'”<\/p>\n
The people Fletcher and his team treat defy those stereotypes, he says, calling his patients \u201camazing people.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve accomplished amazing things in their lives and they\u2019ve continued to do so,\u201d Fletcher\u00a0says. \u201cAnd to us that might be such a little thing that they\u2019re accomplishing, but to them whatever that might be is monumental and it has nothing to do with them being a bad person.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fletcher says\u00a0it\u2019s also crucial to understand that treatment doesn\u2019t follow a straight line.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is not linear: you don\u2019t go from step A to step B to step C,\u201d he says. \u201cEveryone\u2019s different. Everyone\u2019s goals are different. Everyone\u2019s previous experiences are different. Some treatments work for some people, some don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
He says\u00a0substance\u2011use disorders are, by definition, chronic, long\u2011term and\u00a0can involve relapse, and that is something he reminds patients about\u00a0often.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not often you start in treatment once and it\u2019s it and you\u2019re good,\u201d Fletcher says. \u201cThere can be multiple attempts that need to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Progress doesn\u2019t always look like stopping use, he notes.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust because someone\u2019s still using substances, just because someone\u2019s not at the place that they want to be yet, doesn\u2019t mean treatment isn\u2019t working,\u201d Fletcher says.<\/p>\n
Addiction also affects people across every demographic.<\/p>\n
\u201cAddiction doesn\u2019t discriminate. It doesn\u2019t only target those with lower socioeconomic status. It\u2019s a risk factor, but it doesn\u2019t only target that,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
That reality is something he and his medical team see every day at the local clinics.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have patients who make millions of dollars\u00a0and they, more than anybody, internalize what I talked about before, compared to those who have no money who can have the exact same issue,\u201d Fletcher says. \u201cThere\u2019s no discrimination based on income.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although having money may give people access to supports others can\u2019t afford, it doesn\u2019t change the underlying condition, he says.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t mean that you don\u2019t also have the same severity of an opioid use disorder, alcohol use disorder, or whatever it might be.\u201d<\/p>\n
Collaboration is key to finding a solution<\/p>\n
Ultimately, Fletcher hopes that through the work he and his team do, along with working with other local organizations, meaningful change can be made, but he says\u00a0that will require collaboration across a wide variety of sectors, even when perspectives differ.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not naive.\u00a0I know that my opinions and my experience in this area as a physician are\u00a0very different from the opinions of some politicians or police members, and for others it\u2019s very much aligned,\u201d he says. \u201cI don\u2019t think that means we can\u2019t work together.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite different opinions on how to solve the issue, as well as what amount of tolerance there is, collaboration is key to try to solve some of these issues, he says. Partnerships could also help make treatment and supports easier to access.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re all working towards the same goal, maybe just in different ways,\u201d he says. \u201cWe all bring very interesting perspectives and there\u2019s a way for us to collaborate without saying, \u2018No, I\u2019m right, you\u2019re wrong.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
The stakes are also too high for infighting, Fletcher adds.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe ones who are affected are the most marginalized people in our population and in our community so the more we have infighting as policy makers, as politicians, as physicians, as nurse practitioners, as media, the more negatively affected our community is,” he says.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As for what that looks like, Fletcher\u00a0doesn\u2019t pretend to have all the answers.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know all the nuances. I don\u2019t know from a city council perspective what can and can\u2019t happen. I don\u2019t know from a police perspective what\u2019s feasible and what\u2019s not feasible, just as much as they don\u2019t know from a medical perspective what the fentanyl supply looks like and how much tranquilizer is in it and how difficult it is for people to stop,” he says.<\/p>\n
Ultimately, it is important for the community to come together and work to attempt to solve some of these issues, says\u00a0Fletcher.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe all have family members, friends,\u00a0somebody who it touches and it’s unfortunate that there’s so much stigma that’s still surrounding it.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"‘We all have family members, friends,\u00a0somebody who it touches and it’s unfortunate that there’s so much stigma that’s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":852454,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[49,48,84,296434],"class_list":["post-852453","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-health","tag-methadone-clinicmethadone-clinicsarrow-medicaldowntown-barrie-methadone-clinicarrow-medical-clinicbarrie-methadone-clinicdr-adam-fletcher"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/852453","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=852453"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/852453\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/852454"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=852453"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=852453"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=852453"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}