Woodstock Marks International Overdose Awareness Day

Thursday, 31 August 2023 05:20

An event will be taking place in Museum Square from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. today in honour of International Overdose Awareness Day.

WOODSTOCK - Lots of people will be gathering in Museum Square to mark International Overdose Awareness Day.

An event will be taking place from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. this afternoon and there will be several community partners in attendance.

Lisa Gillespie, the Chair of the Harm Reduction Committee for Oxford Health and Addiction Action Coalition, says there will be a purple chair on site as a symbol of remembrance.

"Purple because it's the colour that has come to represent overdose and the empty chair represents those we have lost to overdose. We will have the chair at the event and we'll invite people to add their loved ones names to the chair to commemorate them and as a permanent reminder of those we have lost."

Gillespie is also a Public Health Nurse for Southwestern Public Health. She says the number of overdoses has been on the rise over the past few years.

"We do know that locally the number of deaths due to overdose have surpassed the provincial rates, so it's much more important and poignant this year that we recognize these tragic losses and work together to bring those numbers down."

According to the Opioid Monitoring Dashboard on the Southwestern Public Health website, there have been 20 overdose deaths so far this year and 80 emergency department visits related to an overdose. These numbers apply to the entire Southwestern Public Health region.

Looking at some of the data from previous years the health unit reported 19 overdose deaths in Oxford County alone in 2021, 18 deaths in 2020, and 10 in 2019.

Gillespie has this piece of advice for everyone today.

"Learn how to recognize the signs of an opioid overdose, get a naloxone kit and learn how to use it, and talk to your loved ones if you are concerned about their use because there are many resources locally that can help."