While Canada currently grapples with an opioid crisis, Jane Woodbury from Tofino, B.C. saw the effects of the drug firsthand nine years ago.

In November 2008, her brother died from a fentanyl overdose. And before him, there had already been eight related deaths the same year in Sudbury, Ont., where he was taking part in a needle exchange program.

During our Cross Country Checkup discussion on the opioid crisis, Woodbury told host Duncan McCue that nothing was done at the time to stop people from dying. But now that the topic of opioids is getting national attention, she says Canada needs to tackle the issue by separating mental illness and addiction.

Listen to their conversation below:

Duncan McCue: Jane Woodbury is calling from Tofino, B.C. Hi Jane, welcome to Cross Country Checkup. What do you think of [today's conversation]?

Jane Woodbury: I think that to put mental health, substance abuse and addiction together in one big lump is a huge mistake because we're doing neither very well. Mental health is an entity unto itself. You don't ask to be born schizophrenic or bipolar. Substance abuse and addiction is so huge right now. The opioid crisis in my own life started in 2008 with the overdose death of my brother from fentanyl. At that time in Sudbury, Ont., there were eight deaths that year. The needle exchange alerted the press and nothing was done. To me, you have to separate.

DM: So your brother was at the beginning of this wave then?

JW: He was at the beginning of this wave. He was a Crohn's disease patient who started out on Oxycontin. Now, we know how highly addictive that substance is. We didn't at the time. He moved from Oxycontin into morphine. And then, his doctor retired and he was told that there would be no more handouts of opioids. Then, he began using street drugs for pain. Crohn's is an extremely, extremely chronic pain condition. He overdosed November 2008.

DM: You saw that starting to happen to your brother. What did you try to do?

JW: You try everything, right? You try the tough love approach. You try the unconditional love. As I used to say to him, "Here I am Rob, doing the dance. Compassionate sister or enabler." The bottom line is when you have somebody in that kind of chronic pain situation in your family [or] someone that you love dearly you will help them get out of that pain. I think that the needle exchange and Sudbury do amazing work. These places need to be funded and they need to be expanded.

DM: Last question for you, you said at the beginning that no one was paying any attention. There is an awful lot of attention now. What do you think in terms of there needing to be a national strategy?

JW: There has to be a national strategy and that's why I'm saying take the mental health component out of this. Many of your callers have physical illness issues and [they're] now getting doctors that are hesitant to prescribe opioids to get somebody on that path. So, this is like saying, "Well, we're going to put physical illness, drug and alcohol addiction and substance abuse all in one big compartment." Two strategies need to evolve.