Saskatoon experiencing record number of overdose calls

Saskatoon paramedics are dealing with a crisis.

Troy Davies, director of public affairs for Medavie Health Services West, is claiming there are more overdoses than ever in Saskatoon.

“We have never seen numbers like this. This is unheard of in our history of over 43 years that we have been serving Saskatoon and the surrounding community,” said Davies. “We hit record highs last week in overdose calls and responses to calls. There were 118 calls in responses, and 94 overdose calls.”

This was the highest number of recorded overdoses in a single week in Saskatoon, beating the previous record of 88 overdose calls which was also set this year.

Davies claims this is a problem that has steadily been getting worse since March.

“I don’t think it’s any coincidence that these numbers started increasing when the COVID shutdown occurred,” Davies claimed. “We are a growing city, and we are starting to see major city problems that they see in Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton when they get that kind of growth.”

Narcan is being used more than ever.

Narcan, which is also known as naloxone, is a medication used to block the effects of opioids. It is commonly used to counter decreased breathing when someone is experiencing an opioid overdose.

Davies claims that paramedics used Narcan 49 times in May and June.

In comparison to that same time period last year, they had only used it 13 times.

Davies claims that paramedics have been already dealing with increased stress levels because of the ongoing pandemic. The dramatic increase in overdose calls has only made things worse.

“The stress levels and the toll it takes on paramedics is extremely stressful. When you walk in the door as a paramedic and you see someone not breathing, your body can only take so much adrenaline, so much stress. We have a big concern for our paramedics right now seeing that many serious calls in a week.”

To add to it all, Davies says the drugs that are being used are becoming more toxic.

“When you’re taking drugs that have been made in a pail or bathtub and put into a pill, it’s like Russian roulette. They are getting worse.”

There were 815 emergency calls last week, the most so far in 2020.

“The first step is reporting that it’s happening, we will move on from here,” said Davies.