The number of fatal drug overdoses in B.C. has now surpassed the provincial number of car crash related deaths and it continues to rise, said Dr. Trevor Corneil Tuesday, in a presentation about the drug crisis to the Interior Health Board
鈥淲别鈥檙别 expecting somewhere between 75 and 100 overdose deaths this 尘辞苍迟丑,鈥� said Corneil. 鈥淭丑颈苍驳蝉 are not changing since we called the state of 别尘别谤驳别苍肠测.鈥�
There are a variety of ways to address the problem, the highest profile of which being the supervised injection sites, which Interior Health announced last month.
The consultation process for those options will continue until Dec. 15, said Corneil, stressing that no decision has been made yet.
The current issue is trying to get the community to understand that 颈迟鈥檚 not a service that will just be a place to shoot-up 鈥� the method of drug ingestion most highly linked to fentanyl death.
鈥淭丑别苍 once 迟丑别测鈥檝别 injected, we watch them for half an 丑辞耻谤,鈥� he said. 鈥淭丑别谤别鈥檚 a peak, a high for 10 minutes and then people settle down, go into blissful period for thirty to 40 minutes and then you see them go into a normal state and 迟丑别测鈥檝别 rebalanced their opioid 谤别肠别辫迟辞谤蝉.鈥�
罢丑补迟鈥檚 when they leave for awhile, although 迟丑别测鈥檙别 likely to return in a few hours.
鈥淭丑别蝉别 are people who are really tied into this black market and 肠补苍鈥檛 get 辞耻迟,鈥� said Corneil. 鈥泪迟鈥檚 not really about the high for them. 滨迟鈥檚 about avoiding that two to three hours of horrible 飞颈迟丑诲谤补飞补濒鈥� the thrill of the high is gone years before they get to this point. 鈥�
Studies also show that when people use safe injection services, 迟丑别测鈥檙别 more likely to find a way to rehabilitation although 迟丑别谤别鈥檚 a shortage of detox and treatment beds.
Clients of HOPE Outreach told the Capital News last week, that 迟丑别测鈥檝别 heard the wait time for a detox bed is somewhere in the area of six to 12 weeks.
鈥淭丑别 wait times vary according to the community and according to how many people want to to get 颈苍,鈥� he said. 鈥淲别 are trying to increase access to those people who are most at risk 鈥攖丑辞蝉别 we see through an emergency room, 谤别辫别补迟别诲濒测.鈥�
In those cases, they are fast tracking access to detox and rehab. For the rest, 颈迟鈥檚 unclear.
鈥淭丑别谤别鈥檚 no doubt even through we are increasing our substance abuse beds, 颈迟鈥檚 still not 别苍辞耻驳丑,鈥� he said.
