Coordination is key in battling B.C.'s overdose epidemic, says visiting Portuguese expert

"I must confess, the coordination between all the responses is not as perfect as it could be."

That's the first observation offered by Dr.Joo Gouloashe spoke with Rick Cluff onThe Early Edition, taking time out of his first trip to Vancouver. Goulois thehead of Portugal's Service for Intervention in Addictive Behaviour and Dependencies.

He's visiting Metro Vancouver as part of Recovery Week, an initiative that brings together global addictions specialists to discuss a continuum of care for drug users.

Goulo has been widely recognized for his workoverhauling and designingPortugal's current drug policy framework in the early 2000s, which included the decriminalization of all illicit narcotics.

The drug policy expert touredVancouver and theDowntown Eastside beforesharinghis ideas and recommendations with addiction specialists and policy makers.

The timing of Goulo's trip isn't a coincidence, as the city has already surpassed the grim milestone of having more overdose deaths by September of this year than in all of 2016.

Goulosays the better coordination of public policy as well asthe criminal justice and healthcare systems is integral to saving the lives of drug users in B.C.

To achieve a higher level of coordination,Goulopoints to thedecriminalization approach Portugal used as a means of shifting the onus from law enforcement to policy makers and other areas of government.

"In our case, decriminalization was important because it clearly pointed to leadership for health and social welfare," saysGoulo.

"Before that, the responsibility was much more standing on police and justice services, and there was not clear cooperation."

Goulosays as the head of Intervention in Addictive Behaviour and Dependencies he coordinates and works very closely with 11 Portuguese national ministriesresponsible for files ranging from social services to education.

He says because his department is allowed to work closely with these offices on a federal level, itpromotes participation from each of the ministriesand fosters a holistic approach when tacklingthe issue of addiction.Goulosays the result is a nationwide and centralized effort, something he feels is lacking in Canada.

'Not the magic bullet'

The idea ofdecriminalizingillicit drugs in B.C.has been floated before, butGoulocautions that alone won't fix the problem.

"It's not the magic bullet, but I believeit's important," saysGoulo.

He says while decriminalizationforces a government to deal with addiction as a health issue and not a criminal issue, it must come along with coordinated harm reduction and rehabilitation efforts.

In addition,Goulostresses there is a big difference between decriminalization and legalization.

He says it's possible for the state to show clear disapproval of drug use while still treating someone suffering from addiction with the same dignity as a person suffering from any other disease.

"People that suffer from addiction have the same right to the same responses from the state."

Gouloadmits that, just like in Portugal, there's no simple solution to an overdose epidemic.

He'll be meeting with other addictionsspecialistsat theRecovery Capital Conference of Canadain New Westminster, B.C., as part of Recovery Week.

Goulo will be delivering a keynote speech on Thursday.

With files from The Early Edition