New website tracks Thunder Bay's opioid crisis

A new website is shining a light on Thunder Bay's ongoing opioid crisis.

The Opioid Information System launched earlier this year. It's hosted at the Thunder Bay District Health Unit's (TBDHU) website, and is a partnership between the health unit, Superior North EMS, and the Thunder Bay Drug Strategy.

The website includes statistics. For example, the page shows the number of 911 calls and emergency room visits in Thunder Bay due to suspected opioid overdoses for a given time period. It also showsthe number of times naloxone was administered by paramedics.

Contaminated drug alerts

But it's not just numbers. The page also gives people a chance to anonymously report unexpected, bad reactions to street drugs, which could indicate the inclusion of toxic opioids or other contaminants.

"If all of a sudden we see an increased amount of people reporting a particular type of effect for a particular type of substance that they were taking, then we would be able to maybe issue an alert to the community," said Cynthia Olsen, Thunder Bay's drug strategy coordinator.

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The system can help shape the public health response in other ways, too, Olsen said. For example, one of the statistics tracked is the number of times naloxoneis administered by a bystander, prior to paramedic arrival to an overdose call.

"We want to actually see that reported bystander use is going up," she said, adding that indicates "we're getting enough naloxone out to the community, we're getting enough information to folks on how to use it, and it's important to use it."

"If we started to see those number decline ... maybe that speaks to our need to continue with some messaging out to the community about where you can get kits, how do you use the kits, and the importance of doing so."

Ryan Ross, a Thunder Bay paramedic and president of the Superior North Association of Professional Paramedics, said the awareness raised by the OpioidInformation System will be key to addressing the issue.

"The first step to solving a problem is admitting that there's actually a problem to be solved," he said. "Then you have to form some kind of a strategy."

Ross said paramedics have heard from recreational drug users that they had no idea opioids were showing up in street drugs in Thunder Bay.

Unexpected exposure to opioids

Opioidusers build up a tolerance and know how much of an opioid they can take, Ross said. But now, withopioidsbeing cut into other street drugs like cocaine,people without any tolerance for or experience withopioidsare suddenly and unexpectedly exposed to them.

"They've been using cocaine off and on, the odd time, for years, and not had any issues whatsoever," he said. "And then all of a sudden they go to use it, expecting the same result, and the next thing they see is us in the back of the ambulance when they're waking up."

Olsen said drug testing has not officially confirmed that cocaine laced with opioids is yet present in Thunder Bay.

Ross said paramedics in the United States say opioids are cheaper than cocaine or similar drugs, so the opioids are being cut in to the drugs in an effort to boost profits.

"We're happy that they're taking the steps to put the information out there, because the general public needs to know this is a problem," he said. "It's certainly not going away any time soon."