A Pandemic’s Influence on a Drug Fueled Dilemma

Figure 1: The opioid crisis in Canada continues to claim lives.

The government of Canada has done its best to dissuade and warn opioid users against its utilization during the COVID-19 pandemic. They have released a statement informing the general public of the increased risk associated with using substances.¹ These risks include the further spread of COVID-19 due to the elevated amount of close contact, as well as immunocompromisation for those actively using the drug.¹ However, provinces have been advised by the government to improve access to opioid medications, and while their recommendation may refer solely to prescription based opioids, they may possibly be contributing to overall addiction and overdose levels nonetheless. A class exemption was passed for patients as well as prescribers dealing with substances during the COVID-19 pandemic.²

Figure 2: Opioid-related deaths in Ontario: Prescribed, Diverted, or Illicit?

The rapidly increasing rate of opioid related deaths has been present as a public health crisis over the last decade. 1,018 deaths were recorded as a result of opioids in just the first three months of the year 2020.³ The rate of death related to this cause has risen steadily since the declaration of a national emergency in March.³ The upwards shift is expressed primarily in those in the 25-44 age cohort, as well as those who lived in areas that were particularly material-deprived.⁴ During this year, 3 out of 4 deaths occurred without a trained individual present at the scene for intervention.⁴ It is possible that a certain number of these deaths were preventable had there been an appropriate individual present to deal with the situation.⁴ This failed to happen due to the lockdown measures that were put in place as a result of the pandemic, rendering everyone in isolation—meaning most substance users—did not have access to help or supervision.⁵

Figure 3: Statistics for victims of opioid-related deaths

Other drug involvements may have also had an impact on these opioid-related deaths, particularly the use of fentanyl at the time of the overdose.⁴ The statistics in figure 3 highlight the importance of providing better access to care and information to drug users during the pandemic. The lack of policies relative to this issue is having a detrimental effect on members of the community who find themselves involved in substance use. The government, along with our encouragement, must find a way to act quickly in order to cauterize the wounds in our society caused by the steadily increasing opioid mortality rate.

References

1. Creatura D. One-third of opioid-related deaths in Ontario were among people actively treated with a prescription opioid in 2016. St. Michael’s Unity Health Ontario ; 2018 [cited 2020 Dec19]. Available from https://www.stmichaelshospital.com/media/hospital_news/2018/0829a.php
2. Kuwabarka S. Geographic Disparities in Harm Reduction Provision May Have Life or Death consequences. Filter ; 2019 [cited 2020 Dec19]. Available from https://filtermag.org/geographic-disparities-in-harm-reduction-services-may-have-life-or-death-consequences/
3. Meyer C. New Data Shows Extent of Opioid Crisis Across Canada. Canada’s National Observer ; 2020 [cited 2020 Dec19]. Available from https://www.nationalobserver.com/2020/10/01/news/new-data-shows-extent-opioid-crisis-across-canada
4. Taha S, Maloney -Hall B, Buxton J. Lessons learned from the opioid crisis across the pillars of the Canadian drugs and substances strategy. BMC ; 2019 [ cited 2020 Dec19]. Available from https://substanceabusepolicy.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13011-019-0220-7
5. Volkow N. The Importance of Prevention in Addressing the Opioid Crisis. NIH ; 2019 [cited 2020 Dec 19]. Available from https://www.drugabuse.gov/about-nida/noras-blog/2019/06/importance-prevention-in-addressing-opioid-crisis