The people working to save people dying in the epidemic of opioid overdoses got more bad news this month, as the province is again on pace to suffer its most tragic year.
“This has been the worst year,” said Kat Wahamaa, a woman with the group Moms Stop the Harm, and the Maple Ridge Street Outreach Society.
Wahamaa said her reaction to the latest statistics, from the first six months of 2022, is “frustration and utter bafflement that we’re not doing what we need to do.”
The BC Coroner’s Service announced on Aug. 16 that more than 10,000 lives had been lost to illicit drugs since the declaration of a public health emergency. At least 1,095 people are believed to have been killed by the toxic drug supply through the first six months of this year – the most ever for a six-month period.
READ ALSO: B.C. sees record high 1,095 toxic drug deaths in first 6 months of 2022
“The ever-increasing toxicity of the unregulated, illicit drug market is taking a heart-breaking toll on the lives and well-being of members of our communities across the province,” said Lisa Lapointe, chief coroner. “Deaths due to toxic drugs in the first half of 2022 have surpassed the number of deaths experienced in the same period in 2021, putting our province, once again, on track for a record loss of life.”
The coroner’s report shows that Maple Ridge saw 20 overdose deaths for the first part of 2022. There were 45 deaths during 2021.
Wahamaa’s group Moms Stop the Harm continues to push government for a safe supply, decriminalization and an evidence-based approach to drug policy.
Wahamaa was personally involved in project called “Building Hope, Substance Use in the Trades,” with filmmaker Lorna Thomas. The project was initiated by the South Surrey, White Rock Community Action Team.
Wahamaa lost her own son to a drug overdose, and he was a journeyman ironworker. In the video, she opens a window, and his photo is on a desk. She is also in other scenes.
Men account for 80 per cent of overdose deaths in Canada which has become a leading cause of death across the country. Men in the trades are at particular risk of experiencing substance use-related harms, including overdose.
More people are dying from overdose than all other causes of preventable death combined, which has been 21 per day in Canada, and trades and construction workers are dying at a high rate than workers in any other industry.
Wahamaa said its an important topic, and the videos were produced so employers and industry leaders can show them at safety meetings or other venues. They can underline the factors that contribute to these trends, including chronic pain, toxic masculinity, and stigma, which can contribute to men being less likely to speak openly about their substance use and mental health.
“Over the past six months, we’ve deepened investments in all parts of the province,” said Sheila Malcolmson, Minister of Mental Health and Addictions. “We’re expanding treatment and recovery options with more substance use beds in the Okanagan, Nanaimo, Maple Ridge, and Prince George, and addiction medicine services in Vernon, Kamloops and Abbotsford. We’re also leading the country on decriminalization and prescribed safer supply.”
“Since January, we have opened complex care housing at three locations for those with overlapping complex mental-health and substance-use challenges and who are at risk of homelessness, and we have announced future locations in communities throughout B.C.”
READ ALSO: Grab brunch and join the conversation for International Overdose Awareness Day in Maple Ridge
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