At the March 9th Committee of the Whole meeting, Dr. Paul Hasselback, Medical Health Officer, Island Health gave a presentation regarding the 2014 Local Health Area Profile for Nanaimo.
His presentation highlighted some of Nanaimo's struggles that have also been identified in the Vital Signs report, and suffice to say, Nanaimo has some pretty serious child poverty and low income family issues.
One of the more disturbing facts Dr. Hasselback brought out was that on average in Nanaimo we are seeing one substance use death every month. Those deaths are predominately male in the under 39 age groupl
One of the main contributors are overdoses resulting from the use of a synthetic drug called Fentanyl which is a heroine substitute but is extremely more potent. It is said to be about 15 - 20 times more potent than heroine and can easily result in an overdose.
People who insist on using the drug are advised to never use it alone and only use small quantities until they know the full effect. An antidote drug is not readily available.
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