Drug deaths decline slightly in Sudbury and area

CTV News

8 hours ago

While officials say it's no time to celebrate, fewer people died of drug overdoses last year compared to the previous year.
Loading the player instance is taking more time than usual
Loading the player instance is taking more time than usual
Despite a slight improvement in drug deaths in Sudbury and Manitoulin Districts, experts warn not to celebrate just yet.
And officials said it's important to remember that fatal overdoses are a tragedy, not a statistic.
Naxalone
Officials said illegal drugs are being cut with substances that Naloxone -- a medication for opioid overdoses – can't reverse.
(Alana Everson/CTV News)
'The reality is that these aren't numbers, these are human people,' said Kaela Pelland, manager of engagement with Reseau Access Network.
'One preventable life lost is too many, and we have seen hundreds and hundreds.'
That agency has outreach workers who go out nightly to help substance users around Sudbury. They each carry a 25-pound backpack full of vital supplies.
Public Health Sudbury & Districts compiled drug toxicity surveillance information for its catchment area from January to the end of May this year.
Drop in emergency calls
Fifty-two people died of suspected drug overdose, 10 fewer than the same timeframe last year. The data also found a drop in emergency medical services calls, to 101 calls compared to 207 for the same five months of 2024.
And there were 162 calls for emergency medical services between January and May, compared to 290 calls for the same time in 2024.
Public Health nurse Rachelle Roy warned not to draw conclusions from what looks like improvements.
'This data is still preliminary and we don't know the full impacts until the Office of the Chief Coroner has completed all those investigations, especially within those most recent months, as they are subject to change,' Roy said.
Too early to call it a trend
It's too early to determine whether the improved statistics are a blip or part of a positive trend, she said.
'A large portion of those fatalities seen in our catchment area and in Ontario are often people using alone and, in their homes and so they don't have access to Naloxone or EMS,' she said.
'The difficulty of access with transportation can be a significant barrier to people.'
Roy and Pelland said addressing the drug crisis requires a collective approach, with health officials working with community partners such as Reseau ACCESS Network.
Reseau Access Network
Outreach workers with Reseau Access Network go out nightly to help substance users around Sudbury. They each carry a 25-pound backpack full of vital supplies.
(Photo from video)
Outreach workers from Reseau head out nightly, equipped with what they need to respond to overdoses.
'Look at people and see their humanity, see that their life is just as valuable as yours or mine or our loved ones,' Pelland said.
'They deserve dignity, they deserve respect and they deserve access to health care and treatment that works for them.'
She said it's important to recognize that treatment is not 'one size fits all.'
'We all have different relationships with substances, whether they are legal substances, illegal, regulated, unregulated,' Pelland said.
'And we all deserve to have access to health care that suits our needs. The reality is that it is challenging to access those health care points when we're trying to survive every day.'