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International Overdose Awareness Day sees increases in local drug related overdoses and deaths

"Between January and May of this year we’ve had 16 confirmed and one probable death. In comparison to last year during the same period we had only 8 opioid related deaths

Drug overdoses and related deaths are on the rise in the districts of Nipissing and Parry Sound.

But it is not an isolated problem.        

Between January 2016 and June 2019, nearly 14-thousand Canadians died from an opioid drug overdose.

“So it is a country-wide problem, not just a North Bay problem,” said Mary Davis CEO of Nipissing Mental Health Housing and Support Services.

August 31 is International Overdose Awareness Day, a day designed to reduce the stigma attached to drug-related overdoses and deaths.

See: International Overdose Awareness Day today

It is also a day to reach out and support families and friends who have experienced the heartbreak of watching their loved one struggle.  

"In the last few months, we have definitely seen a lot more overdoses. For instance, when I look at the week of August 3rd to 9th, there were 16 overdoses, one death reported, and 911 was called eight times,” said Davis.

Based on a year to year comparison, the North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit is reporting double the number of opioid-related deaths in its region.

“Between January and May of this year, we’ve had 16 confirmed and one probable death. In comparison to last year during the same period, we had only eight opioid-related deaths. So, we’re seeing basically a two-fold increase,” stated community health promoter Katharine O’Connell.

Emmi Lunel is the Woman and HIV/AIDS Community Development Coordinator for the AIDS Committee of North Bay and Area.

“The program I’m a part of being a WHAI worker (Provincial Women and HIV/AIDS Initiative) our overdoses are up 25 per cent in all of Ontario compared to the same three month period last year. And that is just since COVID,” said Lunel.

The comparison is March 2019 to May 2019 and March 2020 to May 2020.

“With COVID and everything being shut down, it is hard for people to reach out and get to the services. It is making it hard for people who don’t have phones, don’t have internet. They feel isolated and are going through all those things alone. It has put people with their mental health in a real state.”

What is down is the number of visits to the hospital’s emergency department.

“Between March 1st and August 16 of this year, we’ve had 45 emergency department visits related to opioid use among residents in the Nipissing district health unit region,” said O’Connell.

Last year during that same time, there were 71 visits.

“So, we had quite a few more emergency department visits related to opioids last year. In the Nipissing District in the months before the pandemic from November 1st to February 29th, there was an average of 13.5 overdoses and negative drug reactions reported each month. But in the months since the pandemic from March 1st to July 31st, there has been an average of 18.6 overdoses or negative drug reactions reported per month.”

There is growing concern over the potency of the drugs hitting the streets.

“We’ve been hearing nationally and provincially that the drug market has become more toxic. There is a very limited supply because of border closures and some drugs might be cut with different things to make them last longer,” explained O’Connell.

“Some people may take that drug and then they take a different batch from someone else. They take the same amount, but the purity of them is different. So, they may end up overdosing because the drug they’ve taken is more potent. There is a whole host of reasons why we might be seeing an increase.”

The CEO of Nipissing Mental Health Housing and Support Services says there needs to be a shift in thinking when it comes to treating the opioid crisis.  

“At the beginning of COVID we did see a big increase in the number of people at the low-barrier shelter coming out of jail. And I think that is part of the issue as well, that we’re treating this epidemic as a criminal issue rather than a health issue, but I think we’re starting to see that turn around. It is taking some time and I think we really need to start focusing on that,” said Davis.

 “We definitely need to increase our capacity and resources because the stats are showing that overdoses are on the rise, the problem is increasing. So, as we start opening up, I think we need to pour resources into getting out there and helping these individuals.”

The local International Overdose Awareness Day Planning Committee has organized a week of events as part of its awareness campaign.

For more information on the list of events which include Wednesday’s Online Methamphetamine 101 Informational Webinar, Thursday’s Online Naloxone Training and Friday’s Live Facebook Feed of Memorial Flower Planting at the Overdose Garden located across from City Hall, email [email protected]