EDMONTON — After a staggering number of fentanyl-related deaths in the province this year, the Edmonton Catholic School Board is moving forward on an education strategy in hopes of keeping the drug out of schools.
“With access being so easy right now to the drug and the various modes of accessibility… and just how it’s crossing all socio-economic levels I just think it’s imperative that we educate all students,” said ECSB trustee Marilyn Bergstra.
The board passed a motion Monday night to develop a fentanyl strategy to educate junior high and high school students about the dangers of the drug.
About 100 times more potent than morphine and 20 times more powerful than OxyContin, fentanyl is a synthetic opiate narcotic primarily prescribed to those with chronic pain.
Heroin, cocaine, oxycodone and other drugs can be cut with fentanyl, in powder, liquid or pill form. You can’t see it, smell it or taste it.
Fentanyl 101: The facts and dangers
In the first seven months of 2015, 145 people died of fentanyl overdoses in Alberta.
“It’s important that we get to youth so that they can help themselves make good decisions,” said Lori Nagy, a spokesperson with the ECSB. “I don’t think that everyone realizes how potent that is, or also, that they might be buying something else.”
READ MORE: ‘It is a huge issue’: 145 fentanyl-related deaths in Alberta so far in 2015
The Catholic board hopes to partner with the Edmonton Police Service and the Edmonton Public School Board to put together a joint strategy that can be simultaneously livestreamed in classrooms across the city.
“We would like all three to be able to be involved,” said Nagy. “It’s extremely important that we get the message out.”
At this point there is no timeline for the strategy.
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