Declaring an opioid state of emergency - hundreds sign letter
Healthcare professionals are calling on Ontario to declare a state of emergency over the opioid crisis
More than 100 healthcare professionals across the province have signed a petition demanding the province declare a state of emergency over the opioid crisis.
- Opioid volume down in Ont., but many still exceed recommended dose: report
- Ontario overhauling the way it collects data on opioid deaths, overdoses
Adrienne Crowder, manager of the Wellington Guelph Drug Strategy, is one of those who signed the letter.
"I think there is widespread concern about the lack of response on a provincial level, to the numbers we're experiencing, the type of problems that it creates for people who live in our communities," she said.
Raising numbers
The Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health Unit reported 30 opioid related deaths this year, and in the Region of Waterloo that number jumps to 78.
If increases continue at the same rate, Crowder anticipates a doubling in fatal overdoses.
The issue is very real, and very visible to those in the healthcare industry.
A newly opened Guelph rapid access clinic has seen almost seven people a day walk in with concerns over drug use, she reported.
"There is a widespread problem. In the SARS epidemic we had 48 fatalities; [because of opiods] we have had over 700 a year in Ontario, and probably more. Why is there a lack of response?"
And while there have been changes in the last six months, Crowder said that the crisis escalates too fast to halt with incremental initiatives. If something doesn't happen to change that soon, she is worried about continuing the "exponential curve" increase in overdoses.
"I hope that is not the case."
Speed up bureaucracy
By declaring a state of emergency, more processes to change policies and make decisions over opioid reduction can be expedited.
"Addiction has a long history of being surrounded by stigma, shame and disgrace, as if this was a personal issue and not a health issue," she said.
- Doctors must help remedy opioid crisis in Canada, CMA meeting hears
- Opioid volume down in Ont., but many still exceed recommended dose: report
"Addiction is a health issue, and we really need our health services to step up and provide the resources to address it."
Crowder hopes the ability to bypass normal governmental processes would allow more services to be put in place, including harm reduction, to treatment, and better managing of overdose prevention sites.
"At the moment our health services within primary care are very underdeveloped and their capacity is very low in that area," she said.
A range of options can offer many ways to deal with what professionals consider a multi-faceted issue.
While declaring a state of emergency may feel drastic, Crowder said that it's a necessary step towards solving the opioid crisis facing Canada now.
"We have seen movement but in order to see that movement move at a pace that would meet the problem, a state of emergency would be a really helpful process."