Opioids

Why not educate the person experiencing pain? Improving opioid prescribing for youth in hospital settings

Youth are rarely educated on safe and effective opioid use when they're discharged from hospital. A new set of educational materials made by Solutions for Kids in Pain is hoping to change that.

Reducing opioid use for back, neck and shoulder pain starts with interprofessional collaboration

The COVID-19 pandemic has added fuel to the opioid crisis, particularly in treating chronic back pain. But there are several ways to address musculoskeletal pain that don't require medication.

How should we handle the toxic drug-supply crisis? Experts weigh in.

While political debates have muddied the water on effective policy options to address toxic drug deaths, we asked a panel of experts what they see as the best path forward to address the ongoing crisis.

Beyond stigma: Treating opioid use disorder

Stigma impacts all aspects of treatment for people living with opioid use disorder. We can work together to move beyond stigma.

B.C.’s ‘necessary step forward’ in drug decriminalization

B.C. is Canada’s first jurisdiction to be granted a federal exemption to decriminalize personal drug possession up to 2.5 grams. Other provinces may soon follow suit.

Move to generic methadone raises concerns

Ontario’s move away from brand name Methadose has sparked concerns the switch could negatively impact those who rely on the drug, prompting calls for more buy-in from methadone users ahead of these changes.

In ‘Heroin,’ author lays bare the injustice and systemic racism behind Canada’s drug laws

For International Overdose Awareness Day (Aug. 31), Healthy Debate sat down with Dr. Susan Boyd to discuss her latest book, Heroin: An Illustrated History.

Group pushes for ‘compassion club model’ to address surge of deaths from toxic drug supply

Six years after the B.C. government declared the overdose epidemic a public health emergency, policies have failed to slow the scourge.

Making the case for drug reform: Zwarenstein’s On Opium

The movement for reform in this country of non-medical use of drugs seems unstoppable. There are many drivers of change and a major one is the opioid crisis.

‘A heroic effort that went unrecognized’: Harm reduction workers facing their own burnout

Unlike mainstream health-care providers, harm reduction workers do not have benefits like danger pay or strong unions to support them. With jobs characterized by low wages, stigma and political red-tape, overworked harm reduction professionals are seeing burnout on the front lines.

‘Benzo-dope’ wave complicating fight against opioid epidemic

A wave of benzodiazepines is adulterating Toronto’s illegal opioid market, raising risks for users, complicating the fight against the opioid crisis, and imposing extra burdens on a COVID-stretched emergency response system.

London’s supervised consumption site to fill ‘a desperate need in the community’

Drug users in London, Ontario, suffer from addiction-related health problems, like infectious disease, at a higher rate than the provincial average. But a permanent supervised consumption site, expected to open in mid-March 2022, could help.

Safe supply: The debate around prescribing opioids to people who use drugs

Stigma may be the biggest threat to solving the opioid crisis

Infectious Love: Coronary Angiography in Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest and Risk of HIV Transmission in Serodifferent Gay Couples

Cracking Down: E-Cigarettes for Smoking Cessation and Medication for Opioid Use Disorders after Nonfatal Opioid Overdose

Pharmacists are at the centre of the opioid crisis. We need to be part of the solution.

The Opioid Chapters: 11 stories that show how complex the crisis is

Summer Replay – Seeking a High: Opioid Relapse Prevention & Primary Care Networks and Acute Healthcare Utilization

Summer Replay: If the Diet Fits! A SPACE for Opioids in Chronic Pain & Low Fat vs Low Carb Diets for Weight Loss