PRINCE ALBERT — Late on Saturday evening the Prince Albert Police Service alerted the public of potentially fatal fentanyl circulating in Prince Albert.
In a press release, the service warned of multiple overdoses between Friday and Saturday.
Parkland Ambulance Director of Logistics and Public Affairs Lyle Karasiuk said an increase in overdoses is always a concern.
"Anytime we as Parkland Ambulance see a significant spike in overdoses it usually says to us, ‘Oh, there's some bad stuff out there,’” Karasiuk said. “That's usually what it means. What that ... stuff might be I honestly don't know, but it does happen from time to time in our community when the bad stuff rolls through, wherever that stuff originated from.”
Karasiuk said Parkland Ambulance paramedics witnessed a significant spike in overdose calls related to poisoning over 24 hours.
As well, the Saskatchewan Coroners Service has reported two suspected drug toxicity deaths in Prince Albert in 24 hours starting March 15.
The substances that caused the fatalities are reported to be fentanyl, oxycontin or morphine.
“These fatalities indicate a higher risk of overdose and death from drugs in the Prince Albert area,” the Overdose Alert read.
The overdose alert will remain in effect until March 24
Karasiuk said that he did not know personally what the substance was because he did not have access to the information, but the hospital would have something like a toxicology report.
However, he said the spike they saw over the weekend hasn’t carried over.
“It hasn't reoccurred, so it's not an ongoing trend as might be the case in other communities, such as what may be occurring in Saskatoon,” he explained. “Again I don't know what the substance was, whether our law enforcement folks have managed to get rid of the substance off the street or not, I don't know.”
Karasiuk said that the bigger picture is that overdoses can happen intentionally or accidentally in all walks of life.
"What we really need to make sure people understand is let's not stigmatize overdoses, whether it's those that happened this weekend or those that happen at any time in the given calendar year to those people who are marginalized,” Karasiuk said.
He added that he did not know the demographics of those who overdosed this weekend but he knows overdoses can happen in any age group. Karasiuk said that an overdose can happen from anyone from a child who accidentally finds substances in the home to a senior who takes too much pain medication after surgery or mixes drugs.
“I often tell people, let's not put our head in the sand and say it only happens to this group of people in this type of situation and sort of turn our blinders to the rest of the world or the rest of the community,” he said. “Let's do something about it, and (that) something about it is being informed.”
Karasiuk also said a good idea for the public to take advantage of the province’s free take home naloxone program.
"Many pharmacies in our community have access to naloxone,” he said. “Whether the pharmacy charges you for it or not, I don't know, but you could certainly call your local pharmacy and inquire what's available for you.”
Karasiuk added that when you come across someone who may be suffering from an opioid-related poisoning and cannot wake them to activate the emergency response system, whether it is 911 or a local number depending on the location.
"Get them on a hard, flat surface if it's humanly possible for you,” he said. “Again, if you're a small person and they're a big person, maybe you can't, so start to do CPR. Then if you have access to a naloxone kit, follow those instructions, administer the naloxone and as help arrives, the helpers will take over and do what they need to do to help the situation.”
According to the Prince Albert Police release from Saturday, symptoms of an overdose may include but are not limited to slow or no breathing, gurgling, gasping or snoring, clammy and cool skin, blue lips or nails and difficulty waking up or staying awake.
They also reminded members of the public of the Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act which serves to provide some legal protection for individuals who experience or witness an overdose and seek emergency help.
Karasiuk said that the important part is to not stigmatize and label people as marginalized if they suffer from an overdose.
"Maybe those involved have home issues, maybe those people involved have addictions issues, but maybe they don't. We don't paint that picture of an overdose poisoning to say it's only those people who are addicts because that's not the case,” Karasiuk said.
He added that it happens far more times to people from all walks of life and age groups and the community should view it with a broader perspective. He said there are support agencies in our city that can help people access addictions help.
“I think the message is let's do something for our community and let's help our community,” he added.
Naloxone reverses the effects of an opioid overdose temporarily, restoring breathing in a few minutes and buying time for EMS to arrive. He said that training on how to use a naloxone kit is available from pharmacists and redcross.ca
Karasiuk noted that on Tuesday morning Parkland Ambulance had not yet responded to any overdose-related poisoning.
Anyone with information regarding this investigation of overdoses is asked to contact Prince Albert Police at 306-953-4222 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477
