Prince George was home to a single death from an overdose of illicit drugs in April, numbers released Tuesday by the B.C. Coroners Service are showing - but a top Northern Health official is taking the number with a grain of salt.
"The coroner is constantly updating information and data as they get new information...I would want to wait a few more months to see if there was only one case or if there were more cases and see what the trend is," medical health officer Dr. Rakel Kling said.
The fatality in Prince George raised the year-to-date total to 17 in the city and followed on nine deaths in January, four in February and seven in March.
For B.C. as a whole, 176 such deaths were recorded, a record for April, bringing the year-to-date total to 680.
"Once again, we're reminded that the scale of this public health emergency is truly unprecedented," chief coroner Lisa Lapointe said in a statement. "I offer my heartfelt condolences to every family in the province that is experiencing the unimaginable pain of sudden and unexpected loss. Every life lost to toxic drugs in our province is a profound tragedy. Every one of them mattered, and every one of them will be missed."
For Northern Health as a whole, the year-to-date total stood at 48. On an annualize basis, that puts the per capita rate at about 50 deaths per 100,000, the highest among the province's five health authority regions. The total also puts Northern Health on track to exceed last year's record-setting total of 130 deaths.
"The numbers are just not trending the right way," Kling said. "In Northern Health, we're continuing to see extremely high rates of overdoses and it's really upsetting to see."
Looking at Northern Health's three health delivery areas, Northern Interior has accounted for 21 deaths as of the end of April, Northeast for 14 and Northwest for 13.
Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Sheila Malcolmson said the numbers show the situation is not getting any better.
"Our government will continue expanding life-saving resources across the continuum of care, from safer supply to more treatment beds," she said in a statement.
"Going forward, we are deepening our investment in people and all-hands-on-deck interventions."
BC Liberal Critic for Mental Health and Addictions Trevor Halford noted that while First Nations people account for 3.3. per cent of B.C.'s population, they represented 14.7 per cent of all toxic drug deaths in 2020, up from 11.8 per cent in 2019.
“It’s clear urgent action needs to be taken in our province to help save lives. More than just supplementing programs, this NDP government needs to ensure B.C. has a comprehensive mental health and addictions system,” Halford said in a statement.
“British Columbians struggling with addiction need access to affordable treatment options, which are sorely lacking.”
