Introduction
SBS Dateline (Australia) wants to know what they can learn from the Canadian opioid crisis and the fatality of fentanyl, and use it as a warning for Australians. This news investigation discusses (1) why fentanyl kills so many young Canadians, (2) how it first came to Canada, (3) the importance of harm reduction services like supervised consumption sites, and (4) programs and support services in place to help people in several different ways.
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Quotes
“Beneath these postcard views lies the highest rate of fentanyl death in the country. On average, 6 people die here every day from overdose.”
“Ronan died because fentanyl is getting mixed in with other drugs. In Canada, 15-24 year olds are now the fastest growing group being hospitalized for opioid overdose.”
“What they did is they very slowly put fentanyl in their heroin, little by little by little, until they got to the point where they knew you’d be wired for life. It’s very hard to get off of it, I’ve never seen anything like this before, it really grabs ahold of you.”

“It’s simply wrong to say that everyone should stop using drugs – it’s not going to work, it’s never happened in the history of humanity.”
DR. CHRISTY SUTHERLAND
“To try and save as many lives as he can, Hugh helped set up this overdose prevention site. It’s a place where users can do drugs, but under supervision, and get help immediately if they overdose … These facilities have become a frontline to reduce the wave of deadly overdose.”
“Easy to hide, addictive, cheap, and potent, fentanyl has become the perfect cutting agent to improve profit margins on everything from heroin to fake prescription pills.”
“Drug User Liberation Front: it’s where a select group of users can find illicit drugs free from contaminants like fentanyl. When people get it frmo us, they’re getting their drugs checked every single time they use.”
“Moms Stop the Harm: it’s a nationwide network with over 3000 members, all of whom have lost loved ones to overdose.”
Continue Learning
Hey there! I hope you found this resource useful! If you’re interested in learning more about some of the topics discussed, you can browse through these additional resources. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you need help with anything else.
Fentanyl
- Detecting Fentanyl. Saving Lives.
- Fentanyl: America’s Grim New Opioid Addiction
- Fentanyl: One Pill Kills
- Fentanyl Accounts for A Majority of Fatal Overdoses. But ERs Aren’t Testing For It
- Fentanyl Facts (CDC)
- Fentanyl Plus Stimulants Drives ‘Fourth Wave’ of Overdose Epidemic in The U.S.
- How The Fentanyl Crisis’ Fourth Wave Has Hit Every Corner of the US
- Inside a Free Fentanyl and Heroin Clinic
- Responding to a Fentanyl Overdose: What California First Responders Need to Know
- Straight Talk: Street Fentanyl [PDF]
- The Impact of The Deadly Fentanyl ‘Plague’ On One American City
- Why Fentanyl Is So Incredibly Dangerous
Harm Reduction
- Do Supervised Consumption Sites Increase Crime? ‘The Answer To That Is A Flat No’
- Does Evidence Support Supervised Injection Sites?
- Fact Check: Dispelling Myths About Supervised Consumption Sites
- Harm Reduction: A B.C. Community Guide [PDF]
- Harm Reduction for Opioids: A Canadian Perspective
- Harm Reduction Practices in Communities
- How to Use Naloxone
- Indigenous Harm Reduction
- National Harm Reduction Coalition – Harm Reduction Truth
- Rapid Access Models for Substance Use Services [PDF]
- Why Safe Injection Sites Are Considered More Effective Than Needle Exchange Programs
Opioid Crisis
- Beyond Supply: How We Must Tackle the Opioid Epidemic [PDF]
- California’s Opioid Crisis
- Facts About Naltrexone [PDF]
- Fentanyl: America’s Grim New Opioid Addiction
- How America Got Hooked on Opioids
- How Good Intentions Contributed to Bad Outcomes [PDF]
- How the Government is Making the Opioid Crisis Worse
- Opioid Crisis: Addiction, Overprescription, and Insufficient Primary Prevention
- The Impact of the Deadly Fentanyl ‘Plague’ on One American City
- The Opioid Crisis in Canada: A National Perspective
- Understanding the Opioid Overdose Epidemic
- Unraveling the Start of the Opioid Crisis
- What Led to the Opioid Crisis – and How to Fix It
- Why Is There an Opioid Crisis?
Opioid Use Disorder
- 2-Minute Neuroscience: Opioids
- Drug Addiction: How Opioids Like Fentanyl Work
- How Do Opiates Affect the Nervous System?
- How Drugs Hijack Your Brain’s Mu Opioid Receptors
- Medications for Opioid Use Disorder
- Medications for Opioid Use Disorder
- Opiate Addiction | The Causes
- Opiate Addiction | The Signs
- Opiate Addiction | Why It’s So Intense
- Opiate Use Disorder or Opiate Addiction?
- Opioid Addiction (CAMH)
- Opioid Overdose (WHO)
- Opioid Use Disorder (NIH)
- Opioid Use Disorder: Medical Treatment Options
- Opioids & the Body: The Science of An Overdose
- Signs of Opioid Use Disorder
- Therapeutic Approaches to Opioid Use Disorder: What is the Current Standard of Care?
- This Is What Happens to Your Brain on Opioids
- Treatment of Opioid-Use Disorders
- What Causes Opioid Addiction, and Why Is It So Tough to Combat?
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