‘When is enough going to be enough?’: Paramedics respond to suspected overdose a kilometre away from overdose awareness event
The purple chair on the lawn of St. Paul's Presbyterian Church was a reminder of the hundreds of lives lost to drug overdoses.
The wooden Muskoka chair on display Wednesday was a memorial for all those who aren't here anymore to enjoy the sunshine or warm breeze. The chair also carried names of loved ones lost to drug poisoning over the years.
Jacob Destro's name was signed on it. He was 27 when he overdosed on fentanyl this April.
Four months after his death, on International Overdose Awareness Day, Destro's mother Samantha Destro and grandmother Lynne Jaunzemis came to the event at 70 James St. S. donning purple T-shirts printed with Destro's picture and Jacob" written under it.
This was their way to remember their loved one.
We want to show our support for Jacob up there, and help other people to understand that you don't know what you're taking," Samantha said.
Destro's blood samples after his death returned 15 milligrams of fentanyl - five times the maximum threshold that could kill an individual.
Hamilton Urban Core Community Health Centre - along with other organizations including the Hub, YWCA Hamilton, Helping Hands Street Mission and the Community Box - hosted events across the city inviting residents to learn about the opioid overdose crisis.
Nadine Favics, manager of consumption and treatment services at Urban Core, said the event was for everyone in the neighbourhood, including those who don't know anything" about overdose and harm reduction.
Wednesday morning, the church lawn transformed into a place for basic information (to help) start a conversation" about drugs, mental health, substance-use disorder (SUD) and harm reduction, not just for community workers, but (for people) at dinner tables ... so that (everyone) feels safe to call and talk about their experiences," Favics said.
In other words, bringing down stigma around drug use. That's how we will be able to begin to fight the opioid addiction," she said.
Favics has been working as a harm reductionist since the '90s. She recalled how she had 200 clients when she first started.
They're gone. It's been 20 years. Most of them are gone," she said.
We never ever thought that (the opioid crisis) would stick around" when the first wave of overdose deaths began in the 1990s.
It's still here. In Hamilton, an average of three people died every five days between January and March of this year due to drug poisoning, according to the city. The 55 opioid-related deaths in the first three months of this year is already more than each of the annual opioid-related death tolls between 2005 and 2016.
Organizers and attendees Wednesday were walking around with naloxone kits hooked to their belts, bags or fanny packs. Many organizations including McMaster medical students, YWCA and addiction treatment clinics were engaging with people on how they could help prevent drug overdose with the emergency kit.
Meanwhile, not too far from the event, a 40-year-old male was being attended to for an overdose at James Street North.
Shortly before 11 a.m., the Hamilton police and Hamilton Paramedics Service were called to 340 James St. N. to assist a man who had overdosed - about a kilometre away from the International Overdose Awareness Day gathering.
Dave Thompson, paramedics superintendent, told The Spectator that the man was moved to a local hospital in critical condition without vital signs" with ongoing resuscitation.
Calls to paramedics for suspected drug overdose have skyrocketed over the last five years, and continue to increase.
Between Jan. 1 and Aug. 21 this year, paramedics responded to at least two cases of suspected overdoses every single day.
When is enough going to be enough?" Dale MacNevin said through tears at a Truth Hearing event inside the church.
Truth Hearing was a platform offered to people to share their experiences and stories of loss from toxic drugs.
MacNevin, 69, pointed at the overdose incident at James Street North and asked, How many more are going to die before (people) decide that enough is enough?"
Chris Cull, founder of Inspire By Example, said, there isn't a silver bullet that could resolve the decades-long, complex issue.
Cull suffered from substance-use disorder for eight years following the tragic death of his father. He recovered from it with community help and now is helping others in their journey.
He thinks stigma and the amount of bureaucracy" slows down the communities from bringing a change.
We need to start speeding up our reaction time to what's actually going on in the community," he said.
City councillors earlier this month unanimously approved a resolution to ask the federal government to decriminalize personal possession of illicit drugs in Hamilton, following in the footsteps of British Columbia.
B.C. received a Section 56 exemption under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act to run their pilot program for three years, starting Jan. 31, 2023. This means adults found in possession of 2.5 grams or less of controlled substances will not be prosecuted or have their possession seized.
Ritika Dubey is a reporter at The Spectator. rdubey@thespec.com