by Laura Brougham December 5, 2024 Chek News
A new report by Island Health’s chief medical health officer calls for action to address the harms from psychoactive substances, noting that the region has the highest consumption rates of tobacco and alcohol use in B.C.
Dr. Réka Gustafson, Island Health’s chief medical health officer, released a report looking into the “significant preventable harms” caused by alcohol, tobacco and illegally manufactured opioids.
The report notes the amount of harm caused by the substances operate on a continuum where both ‘legal and not regulated’ and ‘illegal and not regulated’ cause the most harm.
In Island Health, alcohol accounts for the most substance-use-related hospital admissions with a rate of 492.7 out of 100,000 population in 2023. Opioids comes in second, accounting for 255.2 out of 100,000 population, then stimulants at 178.7 and cannabis at 91.5.
“Alcohol sits at the right of the policy continuum. It is the only psychoactive substance with addictive potential that isn’t controlled by international laws, despite its significant impact on public health,” the report notes.
“In B.C. and across Canada, alcohol is fully legal with few restrictions.”
“Illegally manufactured substances like opioids and stimulants are on the extreme left of the policy continuum. Since these substances are illegal, there are no regulations in place for their manufacturing and distribution,” the report says.
“Opioids in the unregulated market have become increasingly potent and contaminated over the past decade.”
Opioids do, however, contribute to the highest number of deaths, with a rate of 197.68 out of 100,000 followed by alcohol at 114.09.
