Pubdate: Sun, 06 Aug 2017
Source: Province, The (CN BC)
Copyright: 2017 Postmedia Network Inc.
Contact:  http://www.theprovince.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/476
Author: Patrick Johnston
Page: 17

FENTANYL BLAMED FOR SPIKE OF 88 PER CENT IN DEATHS FROM OVERDOSES IN B.C.

Fewer people died in the province of drug overdoses in June than in
earlier months this year, but the death rate continues to be far
higher than last year.

According to the B.C. Coroners Service, 780 deaths so far this year
can be attributed to overdosing on illicit drugs. That's up 88 per
cent from the same period a year ago, when there were 414 deaths.

In total, there were 978 overdoses deaths in B.C. last
year.

The scale of the crisis becomes clearer in statistics reported by the
city of Vancouver, which suggest the number of overdoses that end in
death are a drop in the bucket when counting total overdoses.

For example, in Vancouver, there were two overdose deaths reported in
the week of July 24. Both were outside of the Downtown Eastside,
"showing that the affects of overdose crisis are being experienced
across Vancouver," said a news release from city officials.

But that same week, Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services reported a
total of 172 calls to overdoses.

"Organizations working on the front lines in the Downtown Eastside are
having an impact on reducing the number of deaths due to overdoses,
but the work is far from done," city officials said in the release,
something made clear by the provincial statistics.

B.C.'s chief coroner, Lisa Lapointe, called the stark rise in deaths
"tragic."

"The drug supply is unsafe and anyone using illicit drugs is at high
risk for overdose," she said in a statement. Cheap but dangerous
synthetic opioids such as fentanyl are often mixed with drugs before
they are sold on the streets.

The powerful opioid fentanyl has been suspected in many of the deaths,
and the coroners' service confirms that from January to May this year
the drug was detected in 78 per cent of the overdose deaths.

"I urge anyone using drugs, whether casually or regularly, not to use
alone," Lapointe said.

"Many deaths our coroners attend are in response to people who
overdose with no one available to provide or summon critical and
immediate medical assistance."

Nine in 10 deaths occur "inside," the coroners service said, with half
in private residences. There were no deaths reported at supervised
consumption or overdose prevention sites.

Two-thirds of the deaths this year have been in and around Metro
Vancouver, with 258 deaths in the Fraser Health region and 249 in the
Vancouver Coastal Health region. More than 60 per cent of the
province's total population (roughly 2.8 million people) live in the
areas covered by the two health authorities.

People between 30-59 represent three-quarters of all drug deaths. Four
in five were male.

The last month with complete data was June, when 111 deaths were
connected to drug overdoses. That's an increase of 61 per cent over
June 2016.

And from the beginning of the year until the end of May, the coroners
service found 78 per cent of deaths related to overdoses - 525 of 669
- - showed at least traces of fentanyl.

On Thursday, provincial officials noted people of Indigenous descent
are three times more likely than people of non-First Nations heritage
to die of an overdose.

According to Vancouver Coastal Health chief medical officer Patricia
Daly, that number rises to 12 per cent in the city of Vancouver.

- - With files from The Canadian Press
- ---
MAP posted-by: Matt