Only a few days after the province of Nova Scotia announced its opioid use and overdose framework, a long-time advocate says the plan doesn’t go far enough.
Amy Graves, president and founder of the Get Prescription Drugs off the Street Society, said the plan touched on a lot of areas where action is needed but those facets were only being explored instead of being implemented.
Safe injection and safe consumption sites, she said, were only touched on, something she says should be a priority.
READ MORE: Nova Scotia opioid use, overdose framework includes free naloxone access
“Whether they’re going to put funding into accessibility of medication-assisted treatment or … any kind of mental health or addictions treatment,” Graves said. “I didn’t see specific funding or an acknowledgment for that … everything was kind of vague and broad.”
On Wednesday, the province’s chief medical officer of health Dr. Robert Strang said the province is still considering other methods of combating the opioid crisis, including safe injections sites. But he said officials were still in the process of a “needs assessment” and could not speculate on what they may look like.
Graves said she felt there was also missing information or timelines on issues like education or “less punitive justice” for drug-related crimes.
Considerable progress has been made, she said, but the execution and timeliness will determine how successful the framework is.
READ MORE: At least 2,458 Canadians died from opioid-related overdoses in 2016: PHAC
Asked what the government still needs to do, Graves believes open communication with the public on what they’re working on and even if those tasks aren’t being implemented right away, the public will know “they haven’t forgot about it.”
“And also consulting those with lived experience, whether they’ve been impacted personally, frontline workers, I think they have an important role to play in consultation of how these interventions will be implemented,” she said.
Still benefits to plan
But there were some parts of the province’s plan Graves said was a benefit.
The framework, announced Wednesday, focuses on five key areas: understanding the issue, prevention, harm reduction, prescribing practices and criminal justice.
Included in the launch was an announcement the life-saving drug naloxone — which is known for being able to block the effects opioids can have on the body — would be made freely available at more than 300 pharmacies starting Sept. 1. Take-home naloxone kits will also be given to offenders when they reintegrated back into the community.
READ MORE: Nova Scotia prepares to battle rising threat of fentanyl
Graves said though there’s work to be done, the free naloxone, along with monthly reporting to the public of overdose deaths, will help in combating opioid use and overdose in Nova Scotia.
Last year the province saw 53 confirmed and probable acute opioid deaths, but documents released through a freedom-of- information request showed four deaths linked to fentanyl in 2016 were suspected to be from illicit sources. In 2017, there have been 24 confirmed and five probable opioid toxicity deaths.
—With files from Marieke Walsh, Global News
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