Naloxone kits have been well distributed among Kelowna乌鸦传媒檚 drug using population, but it乌鸦传媒檚 still important to call to 911 in the case of an overdose, say BC paramedics.
乌鸦传媒淥ften we see naloxone kits are being used but they乌鸦传媒檙e just one small part of the care that these people need,乌鸦传媒� said Don Hunt, a BC Ambulance Service unit chief in Kelowna.
Naloxone can be relatively short-acting compared to the drug they乌鸦传媒檝e taken and once it wears off, he said, there乌鸦传媒檚 a good chance the risk of an overdose remains.
乌鸦传媒淭his is especially the case with the stronger drugs on the street,乌鸦传媒� Hunt said.
These drugs, like fentanyl and carfentanil, he said, have changed everything but the service paramedics are there to provide.
乌鸦传媒淭here乌鸦传媒檚 a thought that people are afraid to call us because they乌鸦传媒檙e scared they乌鸦传媒檙e going to get in trouble,乌鸦传媒� said Hunt.
乌鸦传媒淲e乌鸦传媒檙e not the police, we乌鸦传媒檙e there to help people. If someone thinks they are having an overdose, please call.乌鸦传媒�
The number of overdoses rose dramatically in November 2016 and have yet to really subside.
For Kelowna there were 94 overdose calls in November, 51 in December, 87 in January and 82 in February.
These numbers account for everything from someone who has taken too much medication to someone who has taken an illicit drug. The latter is likely cause for the spike in calls.
Since the volume of overdoses have increased, so too has the demand on resources.
In Kelowna, BC Ambulance Services put an extra unit on the street to deal with the crisis.
The volume of calls has also challenged paramedics personally, though Hunt said they乌鸦传媒檙e handling it well despite the fact its so different from case to case.
One thing he乌鸦传媒檚 noticed is that the overdoses aren乌鸦传媒檛 affecting one specific population.
乌鸦传媒淲e乌鸦传媒檙e going to calls for people from all walks of life in all parts of town,乌鸦传媒� he said.
乌鸦传媒淭here乌鸦传媒檚 an increase in the number of young people overdosing and there乌鸦传媒檚 also an increase among older people 乌鸦传媒� it乌鸦传媒檚 across the board.乌鸦传媒�
