April marked a decade since toxic drug poisonings were declared a public health emergency.

Now, a new report from Chief Medical Health Officer at Fraser Health, Dr. Ingrid Tyler, outlines the progress made over the past 10 years and the needs that are still outstanding.

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“The data and learnings that we’ve collected over the last decade, we talk about the populations that are disproportionately affected by the crisis. We talk about the progress that we’ve made around health services over the last 10 years,” said Dr. Tyler.

“There’s a lot of really detailed information in there about why people would use alone, what the protective factors against substance use and toxic drug deaths are, what we can do to improve these protective factors, and we talk about the work that’s still ahead.”

Over the last 10 years, more than 5,600 people in the Fraser Health region alone have lost their lives to toxic drug poisoning. Fraser Health has maintained the lowest toxic drug death rate among B.C. health authorities.

“I think it’s really critical to understand that the driver of this crisis remains the toxic and unpredictable drug supply. Substances are becoming more complex,” said Dr. Tyler.

One of the needs that the report finds is that partnerships would go a long way to help take stress off of the healthcare system.

“The health system can’t solve this issue alone. We have a very important role to play, but ongoing progress depends on our continued partnership and coordination with municipalities, schools, and community partners and sustained policy and investment in this area.”

Unregulated drug supply remains the key factor driving overdoses in the region.

Substances such as fentanyl, benzodiazepines and medetomidine — a veterinary sedative that does not respond to naloxone — are increasingly present.

That landscape makes overdoses more difficult to treat and adds risk for people using small amounts.

“We’ve talked to a lot to those with lived experience and we talked to our staff and those providing services. And the report is actually peppered with quotes and stories and examples of people from both sides of that spectrum.”

The report continues to show that the populations that continue to be disproportionately affected includes, men aged 30 to 59, Indigenous people, people of South Asian descent, people experiencing homelessness, youth and young adults, and those working in the trades and transport industries. 

“I actually think it’s really important to understand that there is no single solution for this problem, that simply does not exist. I think that what we’re showing is that, whether it’s more treatment, whether it’s more enforcement, whether it’s changes to policy, we need all of those to solve this problem. It’s complex…it’s a multi-variable everyone gets into the situation in different ways and everyone is in different stages of their journey.”

The report looks to what could work in the future.

“One of the most important things we talk about is the impact of stigma on our ability to make progress in this area. So, if I was to pick one thing that we could make the most impact on in the next 10 years is to reduce the amount of stigma that is associated with drugs and drug use, and substance use in general. Stigma prevents people from accessing care.”

Tyler says that stigma often prevents appropriate care being given to some parts of the population and it can impact people’s care, journey, and care experience.

“I actually think that’s one of the most significant issues that we need to work on to continue to make progress. There’s very clearly gaps in what people are able to access. That’s true in many areas of the system and is true here and we continue to try and come up with innovative solutions.”

— With files from Kyle Benning