Nurses call for federal action on opioid overdose crisis

BC's nurses say stronger government action is needed to tackle the opioid crisis that continues to take a devastating toll on communities in BC and across the country. Pointing to drug overdose death rates that remain historically high, they are calling on the federal government to declare a national public health emergency, decriminalize personal possession of all opioids and provide access to a safe opioid supply.

BC Nurses' Union President Christine Sorensen acknowledged the federal government's ongoing efforts in response to the crisis, such as the easing of rules to allow the expansion of supervised injection sites and making naloxone available without a prescription, but she says more needs to be done.

"BC has some of the most progressive harm reduction programs and policies and has been a leader in promoting supervised injection sites," she says. "Yet the province continues to face one of the worst overdose crises in the country ? almost 2,000 British Columbians died of preventable opioid overdose in 2016 and 2017. And in March of this year, we saw overdoses spike to 160, the second highest monthly toll in the province's history."

Sorensen says that while harm reduction is a comprehensive approach to substance use, these policies and practices need to be broadened in order to address the toxicity of the drug supply and reframe the way drug use is approached. "About 90 percent of those who died last year were alone inside a home when they suffered an overdose. Supervised injection sites alone don't help these people."

She says decriminalization is needed to remove the widespread stigma toward addiction and against those who use illegal drugs. "We need to stop treating the most vulnerable members of our society like criminals. We've learned from countries like Portugal that when you decriminalize, people feel safe enough to ask for treatment."

Sorensen argues that by declaring the current crisis a National Public Health Emergency under the Emergencies Act, Ottawa can begin to effectively address the issue and reduce preventable deaths.

"There is a growing concern among nurses across BC that more needs to be done," she says. "The preventable death of Comox's Ryan Hedican as just one example of the devastating toll the crisis is taking on families and communities."

Sorensen is encouraging the public to sign a petition to the House of Commons that was drafted in the wake of Hedican's death and with the help of community nurses. The petition calls for the decriminalization of personal possession and safe unadulterated access to substances to prevent poisoning and overdose due to a contaminated source.