14 opioid deaths in NL during July and August

Jeff Bourne, the executive director of the U-turn Drop-In-Centre in downtown Carbonear, says these deaths are happening more and more. He knows of 50 deaths since he started with U-Turn.

There have been 14 deaths in this province so far this summer due to opiod overdoses. This is one of the reasons government announced the re-formation of an All-Party Committee on Substance Use and Addictions. At a Friday afternoon media availability in  St. John’s, Health Minister Tom Osborne was asked about the spike in the number of deaths and said there were 11 in July and 3 in August, and it’s hard to predict those numbers. Jeff Bourne, the executive director of the U-turn Drop-In-Centre in downtown Carbonear, says these deaths are happening more and more. He knows of 50 deaths since he started with U-Turn, and it’s huge to have support with this committee. Bourne says the face of addiction is forever changing and that wave of change is here now with things happening similar to what’s happening in Vancouver. He says it’s time for the community to come together and stop pointing the finger. Bourne says the community has come a long way in the last 5 years with mental health and addictions services improvements. There is still much work to be done.