Brockville sees concerning rise in opioid overdoses

Brockville Police and the South East Health Unit (SEHU) are alerting the community to an increase in overdoses in the community.

A spokesperson for SEHU told CityNews on average, there are one to two reports per day regarding overdoses and any number above such is considered “higher than normal”.

On Sept. 17, SEHU received five reports of overdoses in a single day, and 19 over the course of the week.

“We cannot predict the cause but we monitor data from the Toronto Drug Checking Services and observations from partners,” the health unit said.

According to data from Health Canada, opioid use peaked during the height of the pandemic. While the rate of overdose deaths and hospitalizations have decreased since 2021, mixing substances is becoming more common which puts users at greater risk.

According to a 2020 Government of Canada survey, one in eight Canadians report mixing substances. While the most common substances mixed together include cannabis and alcohol, more lethal combinations include opioids and other psychoactive substances.

Research from the Ontario Drug Policy Research Network and Public Health Ontario found that between 2018 and 2022, the monthly rate of overdose deaths involving two substances increased by 167 per cent, while the rate of deaths involving three or more substances increased by 186 per cent.

“The unregulated drug supply continues to be highly toxic with high potency opioids and other central nervous and/or respiratory system depressants such as xylazine and benzodiazepines,” SEHU said. “Further, over the last few months, carfentinal is being detected in the drug supply in areas outside of Toronto such as Kingston, Peterborough and Thunder Bay.”

Carfentanil is a synthetic opioid 100 times more potent than fentanyl.

While naloxone continues to be recommended to reduce the effects of opioids on the body, the health unit is cautioning that more potent substances can reduce its effectiveness and the antidote does not work on substances like benzodiazepines.

“The community alert in this case therefore is crucial due to the risk of unregulated substances being adulterated with other harmful substances that are not responsive to naloxone,” it says. “Early warning to the community support behaviour change and promote safer use options.”

Safer use practices can help reduce the risk of an overdoes. These practices include avoiding mixing substances, using a small test dose, and not using alone.

Anyone can carry a naloxone kit and they are free to obtain at participating pharmacies.

If you suspect someone is experiencing an overdose, call 9-1-1