Overdose deaths have dropped in Richmond with only nine recorded in the first nine months of 2019. This is from a high of 28 in 2017.
But in the vast majority of cases, fentanyl was found to be the cause of death – of the nine deaths in Richmond last year, eight tested positive for fentanyl.
In 2018, 11 out of 12 overdose deaths were attributed to fentanyl while in 2019, this number was 25 out of the 28 overdose deaths.
Vancouver Coastal Health is rolling out fentanyl test strips for drug users to take home, but the health authority doesn’t have immediate plans to distribute them in Richmond.
Richmond has one of the lowest rates of overdose deaths in the region, explained a VCH spokesperson, so the first round of the take-home drug testing program will target those areas that are the highest risk.
However, users can test their drugs at the Anne Vogel Clinic in Richmond.
Most people who die from overdoses are using drugs alone, explained Dr. Mark Lysyshyn, medical health officer with VCH.
“Being able to check their drugs for fentanyl may help them make safer choices and ultimately prevent overdoses,” he explained in a press release.
A study has shown that take-home fentanyl checking is as accurate as checking at a health-care facility.
The study showed that of 994 take-home test strips, almost 90 per cent of opioid sample had fentanyl, while that number at other sites was 89 per cent, showing the accuracy of the tests.
The study was done between April and July 2019.
