Fraser Health warns of substance use, overdose ahead of grad
Posted May 10, 2018 1:59 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Amid an ongoing opioid epidemic, Fraser Health is now targeting soon-to-be high school grads with its latest public service announcement.
The health authority is urging parents to have open conversations with their teens about drug and alcohol use before the big day.
“…Ways that they can stay safe, as well as have a safety plan in place to not only prevent overdose but also prevent death,” explains Medical Health Officer Dr. Aamir Bharmal. “We are in the midst of an overdose crisis and at the same time we recognize that young people, especially around this time of year just during graduation celebrations, will be exposed to drugs and alcohol.”
The authority is not by any means encouraging substance use, but Bharmal says if they do, people need to have a plan in place.
“They know how to recognize the signs of an overdose, and that they be able to act in those situations.”
Related Articles
Fentanyl increasingly found in drugs in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside: study
2017 deadliest year for overdoses in BC
Five people die in less than 10 hours after overdosing in Abbotsford
According to Bharmal, there were 23 people under the age of 19 who died of overdose across BC in 2017. This, he says, is definitely a factor Fraser Health needs to take into account.
“I think we have to recognize that young people will be using drugs and alcohol around this period of time, especially with a lot of these celebrations, so we just want to make sure that people are taking those precautions, and even parents are having a discussion around substance use so people are safe.”
He says the first message is to not use alone. “I think especially with the drug supply right now, it is contaminated with fentanyl. With that, people may think that they’re buying different drugs but we have found that in those situations where they might be contaminated with fentanyl.”
If you’re using with others, Bharmal says to try and have someone who is sober that can check in with others. If you have access to a Naloxone kit, know how to use it.
“And not necessarily let people sleep it off, because I think that’s the concern. We’ve had instances where people have potentially seen someone who’s snoring, unconscious, and people haven’t thought that that’s a concern and so in those types of situations we want people to recognize that those may be signs of an overdose.”
The PSA isn’t just aimed at parents and teens who plan to drink or use drugs. Bharmal says Fraser Health also wants others who may be around people using know the signs of an overdose.
“And be able to act and potentially save a life in those situations.”
March sees second highest monthly overdose death totals to date
The PSA comes as BC continues to grapple with the opioid epidemic, which claimed the lives of more than 1,400 people last year.
The BC Coroners Service’s latest suspected illicit drug overdose death numbers show 161 people died in March, the second-highest monthly total to date. That’s an increase from the same month last year, which saw 130 suspected fatal overdoses, and a 58 per cent increase from February, which saw 102 die.
The highest number of suspected overdose deaths in a single month was recorded in December of 2016, with a total number of 162 — just one more than March of this year.
There have been just less than 400 suspected overdose deaths in BC between January and March of 2018.
