"People doing drugs now are dope-sick and it's so painful, you'd rather die." - Constance Barnes, Overdose Prevention Society The day you read this column, four people in British Columbia will die of a drug overdose, two-thirds due to the powerful opioid fentanyl. That means 1,500 people will die in just one year. It's the equivalent of four jumbo jets loaded with passengers crashing at Vancouver International Airport in 12 months - unthinkable. Yet many people ask: Why would anyone in their right mind play Russian roulette with their life by taking cocaine, ecstasy or heroin that could be laced with deadly fentanyl? [continues 303 words]
Taking party drug ecstasy may help boozers break their addiction to alcohol. Scientists are set to carry out the first ever trial to see whether the controlled substance can help treat heavy drinkers. A group of patients from England will be given two doses of MDMA -- another name for ecstasy -- over the course of two months. The trial has just received approval from regulators in the United Kingdom. It is the first in the world to use ecstasy to treat alcohol addiction. [continues 379 words]
Health Canada issued a warning Thursday about drug use during the summer festival season amid the worsening overdose crisis. "While music festivals and other summer parties are a great way to celebrate the season, it is important to consider safety, especially when it comes to drugs and alcohol," said the health agency in a statement. It included tips on safe drug use, how to spot and respond an overdose, and a reminder of the Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act, which provides legal protections for those in possession of drugs when they seek help. [continues 430 words]
DRUG bust worth about a quarter of a million dollars has been tossed out of court because city police violated the charter rights of two men they detained and subjected to a warrantless search. Court of Queen's Bench Justice Sheldon Lanchbery dismissed all drug trafficking charges against Benjamin James White and Jaden Joshua Omeasoo earlier this month, after he ruled officers violated their rights every step of the way. "We will never know how this incident may have evolved if those rights had been provided," Lanchbery said in his decision. "The officers are not permitted [continues 471 words]
I t was terrific to see leaders from Surrey RCMP and the Surrey School District offer parents such common-sense advice this week about the drug crisis afflicting our communities. School Superintendent Jordan Tinney and Assistant Commissioner Dwayne McDonald urged parents to talk to their kids about the extremely high level of risk posed by street drugs these days and not to assume that their little darlings aren't experimenting with them. The warning came a few days after Provincial Health Officer Dr. Perry Kendall made a similar plea, noting that 19 B.C. teenagers have died of overdoses since January 2016 and concerned that teenage drug use may rise soon with year-end parties and summer concerts. [continues 637 words]
VANCOUVER - Drug users are the solution to addressing overdose deaths and providing services to people before they die alone, says a woman who attended a meeting of health professionals in Vancouver trying to develop new strategies to deal with a growing crisis in B.C. Karen Ward, a board member of the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users, was among about 20 drug users who joined doctors, including the provincial health officer, and the chief coroner at the all-day meeting Friday. [continues 600 words]
Last Friday afternoon the House of Commons adjourned for the day with a rare event - a unanimous vote in favour of a private members bill from an opposition party. Bill C-211 instructs the government to create a federal framework to better deal with post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. I've heard a lot about PTSD from people in my riding - it may surprise some how serious a problem this is in our communities, how widespread and how debilitating. And it bears repeating that PTSD not only impacts men and women who have served in our armed forces in actions overseas. [continues 437 words]
Educating teenagers about the safety of recreational drug use is an age-old conundrum for Canada, one at the forefront as the country pushes ahead with legalizing marijuana by next year The ad shows four pretty young women laughing as their convertible rips past the picturesque Rockies on a warm sunny day, the driver - eyes narrowed slightly - joyfully passing a doobie to her friend. In the next one, a hip young guy with high-top dreadlocks pinches a smouldering joint (backwards) in one hand and adjusts the car stereo with his other as his date leaves her house and approaches in a red party dress. [continues 1238 words]
The Sunshine Coast's medical health officer says it would be a mistake to draw any conclusions from a slight drop in the number of overdoses being reported at Sechelt Hospital. "We have more work to do," said Dr. Paul Martiquet. "We don't want to give any false sense of reassurance to the community that we aren't exposed to what the Downtown Eastside is - because we are." Provincial statistics show April was the second-worst month on record for illicit drug overdose deaths in B.C., with 136. [continues 431 words]
In the wake of the death of a 16-year-old New Westminister girl, who died on May 26 of an overdose, Island Health Medical Health Officer Dr. Paul Hasselback advises people wanting to take party drugs of the risks involved with uncontrolled substances. Angel Loyer-Lawrence and a friend thought they were taking the party drug MDMA, also known as Ecstasy, when Lawrence overdosed and died. Her friend was also taken to the hospital but survived. "Any uncontrolled substance is purchased with risk associated with it. Unfortunately we do see tragic events such as what recently occurred (in New Westminister)," Hasselback said. "There was some reporting out of Victoria of a pharmacy that was doing some lab testing that's showing fentanyl being incorporated into MDMA, which is Ecstasy, and I think that really speaks to the drug trade." Hasselback said there are risks of an overdose any time fentanyl is added into other drugs. "On the other handÂ…even if we just had well-controlled, quality drugs here there are risks associated with them as well," he said. [end]
'The new reality': Fentanyl test strips and naloxone kits are part of the mix Vancouver Island music festivals are stepping up harm-reduction measures with fentanyl test strips, more naloxone kits and outreach in light of B.C.'s drug overdose crisis. "If you're a festival organizer, it's imperative to have this on your radar. This is the new reality," said Emmalee Brunt, communications manager for the Tall Tree Music Festival. The festival takes place in Port Renfrew from June 23 to 26 and is expected to draw about 3,000 people. [continues 715 words]
Experts discuss how educators can curb risks Feeling connected is critical to avoiding problem substance use. Cindy Andrew As New Westminster School District students continue to grapple with a tragedy that took the life of one of its 16-year-old students this week, and nearly killed another, experts have said their overdoses are a "call to action" for all schools. Both teens overdosed on an "unknown" substance they wrongly believed was the party drug MDMA, local police said. In Vancouver, several schools and teachers have been issued overdose reversal kits and training, Metro has learned. Several districts' substance use counsellors are raising awareness of fentanyl overdoses, and some teens even trained on overdose symptoms and first aid. [continues 307 words]
Local school boards may bring 'opioid antagonist' into schools to deal with possible overdoses Local school boards are considering following their neighbours and potentially bringing naloxone into local schools in the face of the opioid overdose crisis. On Tuesday, the Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario announced the overdose kits would be placed in all of its schools, located in the easternmost counties of Ontario and including the cities of Brockville and Cornwall. "We hope that these kits will never need to be used, but in the event that they are needed, the naloxone will help to buy time for someone experiencing an opioid overdose until first responders arrive," William Gartland, the board's director of education, said. [continues 1000 words]
Drug use among teens is nothing new. But street drugs are a bigger threat than ever, because they can be laced with deadly substances. The Spectator investigates what youth are using, and how to identify the dangers A GIRL is hanging out with friends after school. One of them has stolen a gram of marijuana from an older brother. They pass around a pipe. It is her first time getting high. She is 14. A 15- YEAR-OLD walks through the hall at school. He sees a classmate selling cannabis-edibles out of a backpack and a friend making a purchase. A GIRL is invited to meet up with friends behind her school. Someone lights a joint and passes it to her. She is in Grade 7. [continues 1911 words]
Introduced to the dangers of narcotics during public seminar held Tuesday night Parents need to be involved and informed to help lower the risk of accidental drug overdoses among young people. That was the message heard Tuesday night at a public seminar organized by Hastings Prince Edward Public Health at Bridge Street United Church. About 50 people attended the talk, which was intended as an introduction for parents to the dangers of opioids, also known as narcotics. They include such drugs as codeine, morphine, oxycodone and fentanyl. [continues 591 words]
Independent local researchers are raising money for the third phase of a groundbreaking study that uses the party drug ecstasy to treat patients with post-traumatic stress disorder. The study combines psychotherapy with the use of MDMA, which "enhances the effectiveness of the psychotherapy by helping patients to access and rework the unconscious painful emotions and memories in a safe environment," according to the researchers. MDMA has already shown promise as an adjunct to psychotherapy, according to the prestigious Lancet Psychiatry medical journal. A randomized controlled pilot study published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology found that 83 per cent of PTSD patients responded positively to psychotherapy combined with MDMA compared with just 25 per cent in the group that received psychotherapy alone. [continues 146 words]
Naloxone kits are flying off the shelves at local pharmacies and the Street Health Centre, as fentanyl continues its disastrous wave across eastern Ontario. Dr. Meredith Mackenzie, a physician at the centre, said on Wednesday that its clients are listening to their advice and reading news reports and are making an effort to curb their use, but it's not working. "People are much more aware of the drug contamination problem," Mackenzie said. "That means people are using more safely, they're using less, but they are still overdosing, even though they have a big tolerance. We're seeing people with high-opioid tolerance overdosing on smaller amounts of drugs." [continues 826 words]
Mark Baratta works with drug users on the front lines of Ontario's opioid epidemic. But as deaths mount, Baratta's story illustrates how far society has to go to end the crisis . . . if it so chooses Like most people who might be called heroes, Mark Baratta shies away from the label. A lean and purposeful man, Baratta has saved 17 people, each on separate occasions. He chalks it up, with a shrug of his shoulders, to keeping his head in the presence of death. [continues 3104 words]
Young brains more vulnerable to fentanyl and opioid addiction At 23, Cameron Shaver seemed to be on track for success with a landscaping business, a new car, and he was thinking about heading back to school to take culinary arts. The jack-of-all-trades from Winnipeg was an inspiration to his friends. He'd come a long way from his earlier teen years, when he had struggled with drug addiction. Back then, it was ecstasy. Cameron had been clean for years when, last September, his mother Sandi received the phone call that no mother should get. Cameron had died of a fentanyl overdose. [continues 1441 words]
Canada loves being way up there, even No. 1, in those surveys about the best places to visit or live. Not so cool? We're also No. 1 in alcohol-related vehicle deaths among wealthy countries, according to a study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reporting on 2015. If we can't get our game together on alcohol, what's going to happen when we add legalized marijuana to the mix? I pity the cops tasked with judging a cornucopia of drug-addled drivers, dabbling from both the illegal and legal sides of the aisle. [continues 773 words]
