Ontario paramedics see number of patients rushed to hospital related to opioid use quadruple in decade: study

A new study reveals the mounting toll the opioid crisis is having on emergency departments and paramedic services in Ontario, and should serve as a "wake up call" to policymakers, says the report's author.

Patients going to emergency departments due to opioid use more than doubled between 2009 and 2019, said McMaster University PhD candidate Ryan Strum, the lead researcher. 

But it was paramedics who experienced the largest increase in demand for service, Strum found. The number of patients they transported to hospitals because of opioid use quadrupled across that decade. 

"This research really underscores the need to increase our support and resources for these patients who are struggling," Strum said. 

The Hamilton, Niagara, Haldimand and Brant region was one of the "major hubs" that experienced a staggering surge in people needing help due to opioid use, he said. 

Paramedic transports increased seven-fold, from 217 to over 1,600 and emergency department visits quadrupled from 500 to over 2,200. 

It's unknown why exactly these municipalities saw more demand, but it could be that there's more people using opioids like fentanyl and the even more potent carfentanil compared to other areas, Strum said. For example, Hamilton had the third highest opioid-related mortality rate in Ontario and the highest rate in southern Ontario, according to city data from 2018.

The McMaster study is the first of its kind in Canada that looks at not only people accessing the health-care system for opioid overdoses and deaths, but also for withdrawal and dependence symptoms, and related mental health disorders such as psychosis, said Strum.

The peer-reviewed study was published Sept. 8 with the Public Library of Science journal, Plos One.

The study also shows that the majority of patients who went to emergency departments weren't admitted to hospital, but rather discharged. That indicates they could receive effective treatment and help through community programs, which, with more funding, could ease the burden on emergency services, Strum said. 

In the coming months, he will be publishing the same data for more recent years, with every indication the results will be even more striking as the opioid crisis has only worsened, he said. He's calling for action from policymakers "sooner rather than later." 

"We've known about the opioid crisis for almost two decades now," he said. 

"So we've got a surplus of data. We've got a lot of experts in the field that are specializing in how to treat and manage these patients. I think we just really need to put all these resources together and come up with tangible solutions." 

Minister announces funding for Hamilton supports

According to recent city data, Hamilton has seen a rise in opioid-related overdoses and deaths since 2018, prompting it to declare a state of emergency earlier this year. 

On Monday, the federal government announced $1.8 million for local substance use projects at St. Joseph's mental health campus.The money is not new but rather was pledged in the 2022 federal budget. 

Minister Ya'ara Saks, who oversees mental health and addictions, said the funding will be divided between the city for more harm reduction outreach and peer support workers, the AIDS Network to bolster its existing safer supply program, and St. Joseph's to improve patient treatment, diagnosis and care. 

"We know people who use substances need a fuller range of services and supports," Saks said at a news conference. "Whether it's from prevention to harm reduction to treatment and recovery, we all need to show up for them."

These types of announcements do little to actually help the city tackle the many crises it's facing including opioids, homelessness, mental health and affordable housing, said Hamilton Coun. Cameron Kroetsch (Ward 2), whose downtown ward is home to a major hospital emergency department and safer use spaces.

Hamilton needs "massive amounts of funding" from the provincial and federal governments to take "bold serious action today," he said.

"Upper levels of government spend far too much time thinking about re-election cycles than they do about dealing with issues," Kroetsch said. 

"Meanwhile every single day we get further and further and further behind."