Above Photo: Edmontonians gather outside the Alberta Legislature during a rally calling for the Province to move to a safe supply and safe consumption model instead of forced rehabilitation for Albertan’s experiencing drug addictions, in Edmonton Monday June 26, 2023. David Bloom/Postmedia.
Alberta must do more to address rising drug poisonings.
There is a sense of desperation on Edmonton streets as outreach workers battle drug poisonings while Alberta recorded its highest-ever number of opioid fatalities in a single month.
In an update to the province’s Substance Use Surveillance Data this week, Alberta recorded 179 opioid deaths in April, the highest number of opioid fatalities recorded in a single month since 175 deaths were reported in December 2021.
In total, 613 Albertans died from an opioid poisoning between January and April this year. Data for May has not been released.
February saw 151 opioid deaths, up from the 115 recorded in January. There were 168 opioid deaths recorded in March. Deaths are up 6.4 per cent compared to the first four months of 2022, with a total of 576 reported.
Angie Staines, founder of 4B Harm Reduction, said the increase is not surprising for anyone working the front lines.
“It has been blatantly obvious from the number of responses done at agencies, by outreach teams,” she said. “Just go stand Downtown, and look in every corner and you will see ambulances and fire trucks. I have never witnessed anything like it.”
She said if the provincial government continues focusing on the recovery-orientated system of care, “we’re just going to keep burying people.”
“What I see is community coming together and saving each other, administering Naloxone in tents when there’s no teams out, caring for people, feeding each other,” Staines said. “That sense of community is there and it’s strong but there’s also a desperation. You can feel that desperation. People know things are bad.” She said the province needs to get insight from the community to address the crisis.“We need to start giving these people the autonomy to make the choices that are right for them,” Staines said.
“(For) some people the recovery-based program works great. For some people, it doesn’t. Is there anything wrong with that? No.”
‘Moral obligation’
In a statement, Mental Health and Addiction Minister Dan Williams said any death is heartbreaking.
“Investing in recovery is not a choice that we make, but it is our moral obligation to allow for better futures for those suffering today,” he said.
Williams outlined the work the province has done to address the crisis, including plans for recovery communities across the province, investing in the Virtual Opioid Dependency Program and the digital overdose response system, and funding recovery programs and addiction treatment spaces.
He added the province has provided funding for services such as Naloxone, sterile supplies, and supervised consumption sites, including one set to open later this year in Edmonton.
“It is clear more needs to be done to address the addiction crisis and we will continue taking significant action to improve access to treatment and recovery for Albertans,” Williams said.
On Tuesday, the Alberta NDP criticized the province for the delay in providing the latest numbers on drug poisonings and “hiding the truth from Albertans.”The province had previously provided an update on March 30, releasing data covering December 2022 and January 2023. Nearly three months later, data for February to April was released.
NDP MLA David Shepherd said frequent reporting of data means it is easier to track and identify the impact of policy decisions.
“Here we are four years after this government began its ideological drive to crusade against harm reduction supports, and to insist on its Alberta model and now we see what the results are,” he said. “Four years later, a record number of Albertans dying from drug poisonings. It’s clear that we have a failure of policy, that this government is clearly getting it wrong.”
Mental Health and Addiction press secretary Hunter Baril said the government was in a “caretaker” period during the election and communications activities are restricted.
Updating the data system is also a “significant undertaking and is done very carefully and diligently to preserve data integrity. (Williams) was first briefed on the most recent fatality data shortly after being sworn in, and it was immediately scheduled for release,” he said.
Nearly 200 deaths in Edmonton
In February, Edmonton recorded 57 deaths, in March there were 53, and in April 47. Between January and April of this year, 187 people died from an overdose in the city.
The city has seen a decrease compared to the first four months of 2022, when 201 deaths were recorded.
Calgary saw a record number of 76 overdose deaths in April, while February reported 46 fatalities and March saw 59. In total, between January and April, 227 people have died in that city this year.
Opioid deaths in Calgary have increased 18 per cent compared to the same time period in 2022.
Lethbridge saw the highest rate of opioid poisoning deaths in the province for April. With 20 deaths reported that month, the death rate was 234 per 100,000.
This is compared to the provincial death rate of 46.6 per 100,000 people in April. In total, 56 people have died in Lethbridge between January and April.