Latest news with #NationalDrug-RelatedDeathsIndex
Irish Examiner
20-05-2025
- Health
- Irish Examiner
Half of homeless women who died from drug-related causes had history of mental health issues
Half of homeless women who died from drug-related causes in 2021 had a known history of mental health issues, compared to 30% of homeless men, according to a new report. The study also found the typical age of the homeless women was significantly lower than men — 37 compared to 44. The Health Research Board said there were 128 drug-related deaths involving homeless people in 2021, which it described as 'premature and preventable'. Some 61 of the deaths were poisonings (or overdoses) and 67 were non-poisoning deaths (medical causes and traumatic deaths). A fifth of all deaths (27) involved people who had been born outside Ireland, mainly from Eastern European countries. In relation to poisonings, 20% of the people who died had children and 15% had been in prison at some stage. The HRB report examined deaths among homeless people using data from the National Drug-Related Deaths Index — which, to date, has examined inquest files up to 2021. It found: 83 of the 128 deaths (65%) were homeless people sleeping in temporary or crisis accommodation, while 30 (24%) were sleeping rough 80% of the deaths involved males Heroin was the most common drug used (63%), followed by cocaine (55%) and benzodiazepines (29.5%) In relation to poisoning deaths, the most common drug groups were opioids — such as heroin and methadone (82%), benzodiazepines (69%), alcohol (38%) and cocaine (36%); Methadone — the legal treatment substitute for heroin — was the most common single drug implicated in poisonings (53%), but was implicated in almost twice the number of deaths among women (85% compared to 44% among men) The report said that medical causes accounted for 70% of the non-poisoning deaths, mostly heart issues. Trauma accounted for 20 deaths (30%). Of these seven were suicides while 13 were from other trauma, such as assault, stabbing, fall or drownings. Overall a third of all fatalities involved people who had a 'known history' of mental health issues — 29% of males and 52% of females. About 80% of these people — including all the women — were in contact with medical services. Typically ages of death ranged from 25 to 77 among women and 26 to 60 among men. Almost 60% of the deaths occurred in Dublin city and county, while 9% (11 deaths) were in Cork city and county. Dr Suzi Lyons, Senior Researcher at the HRB and co-author the report, said: 'Problem substance use and mental health conditions remain some of the key health challenges for people who are homeless, with the majority of those who died dealing with one or both of these issues at the time of their death. "Misuse of more than one drug or substance significantly increases the risk of fatal overdose, which is clear in the number of polysubstance deaths.' The report also examined the three years between 2019 and 2021 and said the number of deaths increased by 36% over that period, with the highest increase between 2019 and 2020. But it cautioned that these increases occurred during covid-19 and that any interpretation of the increase 'must be considered' in that context. Read More Government must introduce new support models to take people out of homelessness, charity warns
RTÉ News
19-05-2025
- Health
- RTÉ News
'There's not enough help' - mother who lost sons to drug addiction
A Cork mother whose three sons were addicted to drugs and died - two of them just 15 days apart - is appealing to the Government to help families like hers. Christine Kavanagh's 30-year-old son Dillon died of a suspected overdose in January. Just 15 days earlier, her 36-year-old son Damien died in his apartment in Wales. Another son, Leon, died in 2021 of a heroin overdose. Dillon and Damien's deaths were so close together they held a double funeral. "We'd one open coffin, we'd one closed," Christine recalls. In her first television interview, Christine tells Upfront with Katie Hannon about the pain of losing her sons. "If I could take this pain away from another family, to [not] go through what we're going through," she said. "The pain that we have to carry seven days a week is unbelievable. "I can't grieve until I heal and it's very, very hard. "People will say to me, 'How are you coping?' It's the love of my other children that I have to face every day and my grandchildren". Christine said there needs to be more services offered to help people affected by addiction. "There's not enough help there for addiction and mental health," she said. "Mental health always comes with addiction." Christine told Upfront that policymakers need to listen to her and people like her. "I'm only one voice but I know there's probably thousands of voices that could be like me," she said. "I just feel there's nothing being done for people with addiction and mental health [issues]". 'My children might have been saved' Christine recalls the circumstances of her son Leon's death as "desperate". "He was found down the lane with heroin spoons, needles, everything," she said. Christine said she wants to see a supervised injection centre in Cork to help people like her sons – this would mean her sons can inject illegal substances under the supervision of trained health professionals. "They can go, they can inject, they can be supervised," Christine explained. "My two children might have been saved if they were inside in a centre." December 2024 saw the opening of Ireland's first medically supervised injection facility at Merchants Quay in Dublin on a pilot basis for a maximum period of 18 months. The Department of Health told Upfront: "The current Programme for Government commits to explore the establishment of mobile medically supervised injecting facilities (MSIF) in areas of need. "The MSIF will be evaluated over the 18-month pilot phase and the findings will inform decisions about the continuation of the Dublin facility and the development of new facilities in other regions," it added. Figures from the National Drug-Related Deaths Index show there were 354 drug poisoning deaths recorded in 2021, 409 reported in 2020 - which were recorded during the Covid-19 pandemic - and 371 in 2019. Christine said the drugs were a 'sickness' that took over her children. "I never blamed my children for being addicts," she said. "I know it's a sickness - I never, never blamed them. It's this heroin that robbed my children." Christine said no other family should have to go through what she did. "I have to keep going and I will keep going as long as I can," she said. "I feel guilty thinking could I have done more for them. But we know we've done everything we could for them. "I just feel something will have to be done because [drugs] are taking our children one by one," she added.
RTÉ News
19-05-2025
- Health
- RTÉ News
'There's not enough help' - mother who lost three sons to drug addiction
A Cork mother whose three sons were addicted to drugs and died - two of them just 15 days apart - is appealing to the Government to help families like hers. Christine Kavanagh's 30-year-old son Dillon died of a suspected overdose in January. Just 15 days earlier, her 36-year-old son Damien died in his apartment in Wales. Another son, Leon, died in 2021 of a heroin overdose. Dillon and Damien's deaths were so close together they held a double funeral. "We'd one open coffin, we'd one closed," Christine recalls. In her first television interview, Christine tells Upfront with Katie Hannon about the pain of losing her sons. "If I could take this pain away from another family, to [not] go through what we're going through," she said. "The pain that we have to carry seven days a week is unbelievable. "I can't grieve until I heal and it's very, very hard. "People will say to me, 'How are you coping?' It's the love of my other children that I have to face every day and my grandchildren". Christine said there needs to be more services offered to help people affected by addiction. "There's not enough help there for addiction and mental health," she said. "Mental health always comes with addiction." Christine told Upfront that policymakers need to listen to her and people like her. "I'm only one voice but I know there's probably thousands of voices that could be like me," she said. "I just feel there's nothing being done for people with addiction and mental health [issues]". 'My children might have been saved' Christine recalls the circumstances of her son Leon's death as "desperate". "He was found down the lane with heroin spoons, needles, everything," she said. Christine said she wants to see a supervised injection centre in Cork to help people like her sons – this would mean her sons can inject illegal substances under the supervision of trained health professionals. "They can go, they can inject, they can be supervised," Christine explained. "My two children might have been saved if they were inside in a centre." December 2024 saw the opening of Ireland's first medically supervised injection facility at Merchants Quay in Dublin on a pilot basis for a maximum period of 18 months. The Department of Health told Upfront: "The current Programme for Government commits to explore the establishment of mobile medically supervised injecting facilities (MSIF) in areas of need. "The MSIF will be evaluated over the 18-month pilot phase and the findings will inform decisions about the continuation of the Dublin facility and the development of new facilities in other regions," it added. Figures from the National Drug-Related Deaths Index show there were 354 drug poisoning deaths recorded in 2021, 409 reported in 2020 - which were recorded during the Covid-19 pandemic - and 371 in 2019. Christine said the drugs were a 'sickness' that took over her children. "I never blamed my children for being addicts," she said. "I know it's a sickness - I never, never blamed them. It's this heroin that robbed my children." Christine said no other family should have to go through what she did. "I have to keep going and I will keep going as long as I can," she said. "I feel guilty thinking could I have done more for them. But we know we've done everything we could for them. "I just feel something will have to be done because [drugs] are taking our children one by one," she added.
