Fentanyl problem

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There is a growing problem of fentanyl abuse in the GTHA. The prescription drug is 100 times more potent than morphine and just one hit can be deadly.

21 year old “B” overdosed on fentanyl about 5 years ago on Thanksgiving. She had smoked a patch with her boyfriend. “We were just puking, sweating, we couldn’t get out of bed and we couldn’t have Thanksgiving dinner with our families obviously. It’s very dangerous.”

B doesn’t use anymore, she’s been coming to the John Street clinic for help since December. Her boyfriend died of an infection from using needles, she says that has made her realize it’s not worth it.

The clinic treats opiate dependants. Dr. Jocelin Mcleod and nurse Bailey Rogers say about 20% of their patients use fentanyl regularly. “It’s 100 times more potent than morphine, so it’s pretty bad. If you’re a weekend drug user and you decide to just try fentanyl one time you could overdose on it.”

The drug is prescribed as an anesthetic or a pain reliever and typically comes in a patch. Mcleod says the clinic started to see a spike in abuse when Ontario banned oxycontin about 2 years ago.