The latest news articles featuring BC Centre on Substance Use.
More work needed on B.C.’s decriminalization plan, experts say
June 05, 2023 | CTV News Vancouver Island
In an attempt to combat stigmas and barriers associated with substance-use, the province has set out on a three-year project to decriminalize the personal use of drugs, allowing the small possession of certain illicit substances. But with a death toll that has now amassed over 11,000 in the last se...
The FDA says people are confusing poppers with energy shots, and dying. Experts want proof
June 04, 2023 | CBC News
Poppers are a chemical substance popular among people who have anal sex. It’s not unusual for the packaging of one product to resemble that of another, potentially leading to mix-ups. But the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has warned people who drink energy shots to make sure they...
New drug checking technology being used in qathet region
June 02, 2023 | Powell River Peak
Through funding from the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA), qathet community action team (CAT) has purchased a Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometer that enables advanced drug testing in a matter of minutes. According to a media release from Lift Community Services, this is the o...
Adding up the billions of government dollars directed at Canada’s opioid crisis
May 30, 2023 | Vancouver Is Awesome
Since the province declared opioid overdoses and deaths a public health emergency seven years ago, at least 11,807 people in the province have died. Since Canada announced a new drugs and substances strategy focused on harm reduction, roughly 34,455 Canadians have lost their lives to an opioid overd...
Machine-Based Opioid Dispensing Reduced Drug-Related Harms
May 30, 2023 | Medscape
A British Columbia program that uses biometric dispensing machines to supply pharmaceutical-grade opioids to patients with opioid use disorder reduced drug-related harms and could potentially overcome barriers that hamper other safer supply strategies, an analysis has found. Characteristics that enc...
