Council learns about next steps in tackling opioid abuse

Dr. Karin Goodison, medical officer of health for Alberta Health Services (AHS) south zone, explained that opioids are derived from the opium poppy, are common in a number of prescription drugs and can be highly addictive. Opioids act on receptors in the users’ brain that create a feeling of happiness, that is often used for pain management. However, it can eventually cause a sort of endorphin deficiency, if used improperly, that requires regular users to keep taking the drug in order for the brain to be able to function properly.

Fentanyl is a strong opioid that can be manufactured into either pills, powder or a patch. It can be added to other drugs without being seen, smelled or tasted, and dosing is usually unpredictable. Some overdose signs on this drug include trouble walking or talking, pinpoint pupils, slow heartbeat, shallow breathing, blue or cold sign and seizures.

Dr. Goodison stressed that this drug problem has reached an epidemic level. She pointed out that fentanyl-related deaths across the province have risen steadily from six in 2011 all the way up to 349 in 2016.

“Calgary actually identified, when they compare their numbers of fentanyl-related deaths and added up motor vehicle collisions and homicides, the deaths related to fentanyl were higher,” she said as an example.

“This is a big, big problem. We usually consider things like motor vehicle collisions to be a number one killer, as far as injuries. We call an accidental overdose a type of unintentional injuries, and it’s leading that.”

Stacey Bourque, executive director for Lethbridge’s AIDS Outreach, Community Harm Reduction Education and Support Society (ARCHES), and Jill Manning, managing director for ARCHES, echoed those statistics. Manning added that the demand for safe injection needles has sky-rocketed.

“I started in this position a year and a half ago, and we were distributing anywhere from 3,000 to 4,000 per month. This past month we distributed 16,000 — in April 2017. So, we’ve seen about a four-fold increase.”

Bourque estimated that there are roughly 3,000 drug users in the city, 75-per cent of which use needles to inject. She also said that fentanyl and methamphetamine are the most commonly used drugs.

Increased drug use has in turn caused an increased workload for local police and paramedics, according to Deputy Fire Chief Dana Terry and Insp. Tom Ascroft with the Lethbridge Police Service.

Terry says fire department staff administered naloxone — which quickly reverses opioid overdose-related symptoms until emergency medical care can be given — 83 times last year, of which 76 patients were treated with the antidote more than once.

He also noted that the department has also been tasked on an ever-increasing basis to clean up discarded needles around the community. More importantly, his staff are required to be especially conscience when responding to overdose calls in order to avoid being exposed to the drug, and may need to rely more on the local hazardous materials team.

Other spin off crimes including property theft and public order problems are also prevalent consequences of rising drug use, Insp. Ascroft said. But he also recognizes that police action isn’t the ultimate cure.

“It’s not something we can really arrest our way out of. These people are addicted, so the threat of a criminal charge doesn’t hold the same weight.

“The addiction is still there. We arrest them, they go to jail for 30 days, they come out, they’re still addicted,” Insp. Ascroft continued. “We certainly have a role to play. I’m not saying that we will not arrest or prosecute people, but that alone is not the answer.”

Dr. Goodison made sure to emphasize a number of times during Monday’s presentation that addiction is a chronic disease and should be treated as such, in order to truly help Lethbridge drug users. Tom Mountain, director of addictions and mental health for AHS south zone, explained that opioid replacement therapies, like suboxone and methadone, evidence-based harm reduction efforts and counselling are the most effective treatments.

Another option the Coalition on Opioid Use will explore through its research is the possible implementation of supervised consumption sites in Lethbridge.

“The supervised consumption site is certainly not a sure thing, so we don’t want to get ahead of ourselves. We don’t want to ruffle feathers when there’s no need to,” explained Manning.

“Right now, we’re completing a needs assessment, and what that looks like is to survey up to 200 drug users just to see what they identify as the services that they need. It really needs to come from users to identify where the gaps currently are, what they would benefit from, what things would encourage them to use a facility like that if it were to exist… We’re waiting on the data and the results from that before we take any steps further.”

A full report with recommendations is expected by this summer.

Beyond that, the group plans to recruit more stakeholders to continue raising awareness about the issue as a whole and available supports.

Mayor Chris Spearman noted that he’s worked with the coalition for some time now, and that this information is important for the public to grasp the complex task of drug use and crime reduction at the local level.

“The important thing is to get the community organizations together and get the best advice we can. Let’s realize how significant this problem is. Let’s realize that it’s not any one demographic, that it’s across the spectrum,” he added.

“What we heard was that drug users and addicts are looking for help… We need to make sure that we are providing the services that are necessary to combat this problem.”

by Sam Borsato - @BorsatoSam on Twitter

Council learns about next steps in tackling opioid abuse

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