Pubdate: Mon, 14 Jul 2014
Source: Record, The (Kitchener, CN ON)
Page: A6
Copyright: 2014 Metroland Media Group Ltd.
Contact:  http://www.therecord.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/225
Author: Kayla Follett
Note: Kayla Follett is a Master of Social Work graduate, with the
Newfoundland and Labrador Sexual Assault Crisis Centre. Her research
on this topic was conducted during an internship with the Waterloo
Region Crime Prevention Council, and was published in the July 2014
issue of the Journal of Critical Social Work (co-authored by Anthony
Piscitelli, Michael Parkinson and Felix Munger).

GOOD SAMARITAN IMMUNITY LAW COULD SAVE LIVES

What if you could save a life? Just one life. Would
you?

For almost all of us, the answer to these questions is an enthusiastic
yes. Without question, regardless of anything, a life, just one life,
is worth saving.

But what if saving that person's life tested your political
standpoints around drug use? Would that life still be worth saving?

Across this country, people are dying from legal and illegal drug use.
Reliable statistics on drug overdoses across Canada are difficult to
find, but research by the Ontario coroner's office shows on average,
there is an overdose every day in our nation's capital and 33 people a
year die from overdoses in Ottawa.

Clearly, people who use drugs, along with their family and friends,
come face-to-face with death all the time. But what can be done? How
can we save people? One answer lies in the way emergency services
respond when they receive drug overdose emergency calls.

If you were to witness a heart attack, you would call 911 without
hesitation. You would not think of the repercussions of making that
call - someone is having a heart attack and their life needs to be
saved.

Now try to imagine how this scenario changes: it is not a heart
attack, it is a drug overdose. Our research, published in the most
recent issue of the Journal of Critical Social Work, shows that people
who witness overdoses think very hard about the repercussions of
making that call to 911.

Sometimes these repercussions are too great - people will hesitate or
not call at all.

Fear of arrest weighs heavily on this life-or-death decision. People
legitimately fear the police showing up, being criminally charged for
drug possession, and for mothers, having their children taken away.
All of these consequences anxiously whirl around in the panicked mind
of a witness.

What happens? Over half of the people surveyed do not make the
critical 911 call. Some may try to help the victim themselves, which
sadly can have dangerous consequences. Street remedies can often make
the situation worse. The longer someone waits for medical assistance,
the more likely that a life will be lost.

So what can be done? How can we save people?

One idea used in Vancouver is to limit police involvement in routine
overdose calls. The theory goes, if you don't send the police, there
is no reason to fear calling 911. Unfortunately, this solution won't
work in many parts of Canada.

In many cities and most rural communities, the police are often the
first responders, and those in the best position to save an overdose
victim's life.

A more feasible, Canada-wide option is Good Samaritan Drug Overdose
Laws. These laws protect overdose victims and someone who calls 911
from arrest for being under the influence, simple drug possession, and
possessing drug paraphernalia. They do not protect people from serious
offences such as trafficking.

Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Laws exist in several American states.
Preliminary evaluation of these out of the United States show that 88
per cent of opiate users are aware of the law and are more likely to
call 911.

Making naloxone, also known as Narcan, available in every province
without a prescription is also an essential piece of this puzzle.
Naloxone can be easily administered and it temporarily counteracts the
effects of drug overdose, providing precious time to get the person to
the hospital. The Ontario Health Ministry recently introduced naloxone
for public distribution, and emergency responders watch in amazement
as the compound saves lives.

Ultimately if we truly believe that every life is precious, then the
answer is policy change. We need to reduce the barriers to calling 911
during routine drug overdoses by providing limited legal immunity
through Good Samaritan Drug Overdoes Laws, and we need to work on
distributing naloxone across Canada, barrier-free. That life, that one
life, would be saved.

If you ever are unfortunate enough to witness a drug overdose, the
correct course of action is to call 911, perform Cardiopulmonary
resuscitation (CPR) if the victim has stopped breathing, and
administer naloxone if you have access to it.

Kayla Follett is a Master of Social Work graduate, with the
Newfoundland and Labrador Sexual Assault Crisis Centre. Her research
on this topic was conducted during an internship with the Waterloo
Region Crime Prevention Council, and was published in the July 2014
issue of the Journal of Critical Social Work (co-authored by Anthony
Piscitelli, Michael Parkinson and Felix Munger).  
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D