Fraser Health aims to better connect drug users to treatment, support
New team of health professionals, expanded crisis line and opioid clinics to be implemented following survey
Fraser Health Authority is rolling out a number of initiatives to improve access to support for people who use illegal drugs like meth and street opioids like fentanyl.
It follows a survey by the authority that revealed many drug users and their friends and family found it difficult to find and access substance use services like counselling and therapy.
Fraser Health, which covers communities from Burnaby to Hope, B.C., surveyed nearly 1,200 drug users and their family and friends in May.
"We know that those folks are more difficult to engage and they don't necessarily encounter health services as often," said Dr. Victoria Lee, chief medical health officer for Fraser Health.
Expanded services
As a result of the survey's findings, the health authority's 24/7 crisis line is now being expanded so it acts as an immediate access point for users in need of support. In the past, the call line was primarily concerned with mental health, according to Fraser Health.
As well, there is a newly created team of professionals that doctors and ER departments can call when they have questions related to drug users. The team can provide counselling, family support and help find access to treatment.
"When you're looking for help, the last thing you want to do is turn people away because it's too onerous or too difficult or there's too many barriers," Lee said.
The health authority said mental health concerns accompany almost 50 per cent of people who struggle with substance use.
Because of that, it will also be be integrating opioid treatment clinics into mental health services in White Rock and Langley later this year.
"As we escalate our response to the overdose crisis, connecting people to treatment is a top priority for our government," said Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Judy Darcy in a press release.
The B.C. Coroners Service says more than 1,400 people died of an illicit drug overdose in the province in 2017.