Top Canadian Health Official Stops by YSPH to Discuss Opioid Epidemic
Dr. Theresa Tam (center), the Chief Public Health Officer of Canada, stopped by the Yale School of Public Health on Friday en route to Washington, D.C., to discuss the opioid epidemic in the United States as well as in Canada and share ideas for combatting it.
Dr. Tam, who is the top public health official for the Government of Canada, was interested in learning more about the mass poisoning that occurred in New Haven in August where some 100 people were transported to the emergency room after using synthetic cannabinoids on or around the New Haven Green. The incident sparked national and international media coverage.
During a roundtable discussion, Dr. Tam described opioids as a serious problem across Canada and outlined steps that her country has taken to address it. Naloxone, a medicine that reverses an overdose and can save a life if administered in time, is available, as are needle exchanges to prevent the transmission of infections. Canada also has a number of drug injection sites, where people can safely inject drugs. No deaths have been associated with any of the sites.
“We definitely cannot arrest our way out of this,” she told the gathering.