Opioid OD antidote use spikes as street-drug deaths soar to record levels ‘We need action now,’ front-line agency’s leader says, calling for safe-consumption sites to slow parade of victims headed to morgue By: Chris Kitching Posted: 7:00 PM CDT Tuesday, Mar. 14, 2023 Last Modified: 9:13 PM CDT Tuesday, Mar. 14, 2023 Updates

Drug deaths are hitting record numbers in Winnipeg’s core, while the use of life-saving medication in suspected opioid overdoses continues to surge.

Jamil Mahmood, executive director of Main Street Project, said safe supply, safe-consumption sites and more outreach are needed now to help address the city’s toxic drug crisis.

“Those calls have not been actioned and we are seeing more drug-poisoning deaths than ever before,” he told the Free Press. “We need action now, and the result of no action is that front-line service organizations like Main Street Project are now the front line of emergency response to the toxic drug supply and drug poisonings.”

Winnipeg’s fire, paramedic and police services each reported another annual increase in calls where members administered at least one dose of naloxone to someone suffering a suspected overdose.

The nasal spray, known by the brand name Narcan, can temporarily reverse an overdose from opioids such as heroin or fentanyl. Patients often require multiple doses.

The Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service administered naloxone to 2,054 patients in 2022, up from 1,904 in 2021 and 1,579 in 2020.

A total of 3,628 doses were used.

In 2022, the Winnipeg Police Service were present at 288 suspected overdoses that required naloxone to be administered by officers, cadets or WFPS members.

The total in 2021 was 265.

Police were present at 61 incidents that required at least one dose of Narcan in January and February of this year — a pace that will eclipse 2022 if it continues.

A suspected OD occurred Saturday morning at about 11 a.m. in a bus shelter at Main Street and William Avenue, outside city hall.

After police were flagged down, a field training officer administered an initial dose of naloxone to an unconscious and unresponsive 28-year-old woman, followed by five more doses from cadets.

The woman regained consciousness, was taken to hospital and is expected to make a full recovery, police said.

A 34-year-old man in a wheelchair had a similar outcome when he approached cadets near Edmonton Street and Graham Avenue at about 10 p.m. on March 8.

The distressed man told them he had just taken a fentanyl-based street drug called “down,” which contains an animal tranquilizer, and his condition quickly deteriorated.

He regained consciousness after the cadets administered four doses of Narcan.

Aimee Peake, who owns Bison Books on Graham, is among those who work in or visit downtown who’ve had to get help for someone.

“We see people in varying levels of distress sometimes in bus shelters, sometimes in the street, sometimes in our store,” she said.

Peake, who has been working downtown for 20 years, said the issues are not exclusive to the inner-city.

In winter, some people enter her store because they don’t have a warm place to go, pointing to a need for spaces or shelters that are open during the daytime and can help connect vulnerable Winnipeggers with the resources they need, she said.

Main Street Project provides naloxone training for its staff and community members, and it offers services such as mobile outreach for people experiencing mental-health issues, addictions or homelessness, among others.

Mahmood said the non-profit is seeing multiple overdoses every day in its spaces and the surrounding community.

“I’d remind readers that each person that dies is a loved one, a friend, a family member, and a tragic loss of life,” he said.

Mahmood has urged the province to take more steps to support harm reduction and health-care services for all Manitobans.

“Actions rooted in evidence, based on public health and human rights,” he said. “Harm reduction is about meeting people where they’re at and working to eliminate or reduce harm. Policies related to safe supply and safe consumption can be actioned immediately, short-term.

“People using substances in places like bus shelters and other unsafe or unsupervised spaces are doing so because they literally have no where else to go. People are dying from toxic drug supply that could be replaced with a safer supply or tested in a safe space.”

“People using substances in places like bus shelters and other unsafe or unsupervised spaces are doing so because they literally have no where else to go. People are dying from toxic drug supply that could be replaced with a safer supply or tested in a safe space.”–Jamil  Mahmood

On Tuesday, the provincial government released preliminary data about overdose deaths in 2022. It had refused to do so for days despite the information being made public by Moms Stop the Harm, a network of families affected by substance use-related death and harm.

The numbers, broken down by deaths each month, were put up on the province’s website.

At least 377 people died between January and November 2022, with the highest number, 43, in October. December data is not yet available.

In 2021, 424 Manitobans died from overdoses, compared to 371 in 2020 and 199 in 2019.

In a column published in Tuesday’s Free Press, Mental Health and Community Wellness Minister Janice Morley-Lecomte hinted new measures could “open a new window” for licensed and regulated supervised-consumption sites at some point in the future.

The government tabled legislation Tuesday afternoon that would mandate licensing for all addiction services in the province.

Morley-Lecomte also said $12 million in funding will help up to 300 more people receive treatment in Brandon, Portage la Prairie and Ashern each year.

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @chriskitching