Pubdate: Fri, 20 Apr 2012
Source: Record, The (CN BC)
Copyright: 2012 Lower Mainland Publishing Group Inc.
Contact:  http://www.royalcityrecord.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1654
Author: Jennifer Moreau

CITY HIGH IN DRUG OVERDOSES

But Report's Author Says Stats Are on Par With Other Cities

A Fraser Health Authority report on injection drug use and harm 
reduction is showing relatively high rates of hepatitis C, illicit 
drug overdoses and deaths for New Westminster, although the report's 
author says the Royal City is on par with surrounding municipalities.

The Record obtained a copy of the attachment that was to be included 
as part of a proposed harm reduction service plan for Abbotsford, 
which has an anti harm-reducation bylaw.

David Portesi, a public health director with the authority, authored 
the report, which has been shared with the City of Abbotsford and an 
HIV/AIDS/ Hep C regional advisory committee but not yet released to the public.

According to the attachment, New Westminster had the highest rate of 
people admitted to hospital because of illicit drug overdoses 
compared to Abbotsford, Surrey and Burnaby.

Between 2006/07 and 2010/11, New Westminster's rate was 23.6 per 
100,000 population, whereas Abbotsford's was 21.9, Surrey's was 17.3 
and Burnaby's was 11.4. The rates are based on where the drugs users 
live, not what hospital they were admitted to.

However, the numbers reflect per capita rates, as Portesi pointed 
out, and New Westminster's smaller population - just 67,000 - can 
make the rate more "volatile."

"I think you have to take some caution when interpreting rates for an 
area like New West. It can be very volatile," Portesi said. "For 
example, an increase in the sheer number of events from say 10 to 20 
(an increase of 10) will double the rate in New West, whereas going 
up from 50 to 60 (also an increase of 10) in a larger metropolitan 
area won't have as much of an effect even though you've seen the same 
number of people."

For example, the actual numbers of people admitted to hospital for 
overdoses shows Surrey at the highest with 79, Abbotsford second with 
29, Burnaby third with 25 and New Westminster last at 15.

"My perspective, looking at New West, and the surrounding area - 
Burnaby, looking at Surrey and Abbotsford - my professional opinion 
is it's on par and similar with other Metropolitan areas in Fraser 
Health. I wouldn't particularly pick out New West based on this data 
as having a better or worse situation related to injection drug use."

That said, New Westminster was second only to Vancouver (including 
the Downtown Eastside) for rates of overdose deaths related to 
illicit drugs. For 2005 to 2009, Vancouver's average rate (per 
100,000 people) was 11.79, New Westminster's was 11.07, Abbotsford's 
was at 8.08, Surrey was 9.01, while Burnaby was last at 4.89. Again, 
Portesi pointed out, the rates are influenced by the population size 
of each municipality.

"When you have a smaller population size, those rates can be more 
volatile. If you look at it year by year, it's actually trending down 
for New West," he said.

For hepatitis C rates, New Westminster was the highest at 67 for 
100,000 people (which reflects 45 actual people), while Abbotsford, 
Surrey and Burnaby were lower. By comparison, B.C.'s 2009 hepatitis C 
rate was 54.9, and Canada's was 33.7 per 100,000 people. Hepatitis C 
is a viral disease often spread by sharing needles. It's more easily 
transmitted than HIV, so the prevalence is generally higher, the 
attachment states. HIV rates have been steadily declining in all of 
B.C., the Fraser Health region included, according to the attachment.

When it comes to illicit drug use, Fraser Health spokesperson Roy 
Thorpe-Dorward stated that rates of illness and death were decreasing 
in New Westminster.

"Overall, we are seeing a decreasing trend in rates for New West. 
Higher rates in 2005/06 have driven up the average rates, and the 
five-year averages reported in the fact sheet do not reflect the 
current rates for New West," he said.

For example, the 2009 mortality rate for New West was 4.14, lower 
than 11.07, which is a five-year-average.

According to the Centre for Addictions Research of B.C., in 2009, 
illicit drugs accounted for 4,049 hospitalizations, while alcohol was 
responsible for 20,534 and tobacco caused 27,620.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom