Drug poisoning alert issued after weekend spike in ER visits in Peterborough: health unit

Peterborough Public Health a drug poisoning alert on Monday following another spike in drug-related emergency department visits over the weekend.

According to the regional health unit, on Saturday there were five drug-related poisonings treated at Peterborough Regional Health Centre’s emergency department. The health unit serves the City of Peterborough, Peterborough County, Hiawatha First Nation and Curve Lake First Nation.

“This is suspected to be the result of an opiate product with an increased level of toxicity,” the health unit stated.

The last drug alert was issued on Sept. 14 following five drug poisonings that required a visit to the hospital’s emergency department.

According to the latest data on the health unit’s opioid harms portal, in September there were six suspected fatal drug poisonings, down from seven reported in August and up from four reported in July.

To date in 2022, there have been 38 suspected fatal drug overdoses, according to the portal.

Also in September, there were 35 visits to PRHC’s emergency department for opioid overdoses, down from 46 in August and 58 in July.

From October 2021 to Sept. 30, there have been 574 emergency department visits for drug poisonings. Of the 574 visits, 58 per cent of them were made by men. Just over half (52 per cent) of the visits are people between the age of 25 to 44, the portal reports.

For 2022, there have been 424 emergency department visits for drug poisonings. Here are the monthly totals:

• September: 35
• August: 46
• July: 58
• June: 62
• May: 50
• April: 51
• March: 40
• February: 52
• January: 30

The health unit says anyone who uses drugs, or knows someone who does, are asked to take the follow precautions:

• don’t use drugs alone — visit the Consumption Treatment Services site at 220 Simcoe St. (open 9:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily)
• test a small amount of drug before you use
• avoid mixing drugs
• if you are alone, call the National Overdose Response Service (NORS) virtual safe consumption at 1-888-668-NORS (6677), or call a friend
• ensure that emergency services can be contacted in the event of an overdose
• Keep a naloxone kit on hand. You can get a kit at most pharmacies and needle-exchange sites. To find out how to access naloxone visit peterboroughpublichealth.ca and search for “opioids” or find its Accessing Naloxone pdf here.

Use Peterborough Public Health’s Drug Reporting Tool to anonymously report overdose incidents and harms in the community.

2:43 Advocates say successful start for safe injection site in Peterborough