Health Reports
A Canadian peer-reviewed journal of population health and health services research
February 2021
Understanding the socioeconomic profile of people who experienced opioid overdoses in British Columbia, 2014 to 2016
by Gisèle Carrière, Claudia Sanmartin, and Rochelle Garner
In 2016, British Columbia’s (B.C.) Provincial Health Officer declared a public health emergency in response to increases in illicit-drug overdoses and related deaths. Between 2011 and 2016, the number of illicit-drug toxicity deaths in B.C. totalled 2,788, having increased from 295 in 2011, to 991 in 2016.1 These deaths were largely related to the use of illicit fentanyl and its analogues. In 2019, these substances were detected in 87% of illicit-drug toxicity deaths. In 2012, this proportion was 5%. Although the opioid crisis is national in scope, B.C. continues to experience a disproportionately higher rate of deaths attributed to illicit drug overdoses, at 20.7 per 100,000 population (age-adjusted), relative to 8.4 for the whole of Canada.
Abstract
Full article
PDF version
The Daily release
Understanding the socioeconomic profile of people who experienced opioid overdoses in British Columbia, 2014 to 2016Related articles
Trends in paediatric cancer survival in Canada, 1992 to 2017
by Larry F. Ellison, Lin Xie and Lillian Sung
Each year in Canada, approximately 1,000 children aged 0 to 14 years are diagnosed with cancer, and 110 die from the disease. Worldwide, impressive gains in survival have been made over time. These advances can primarily be attributed to a deeper understanding of paediatric cancer biology, combined with successive, multi-institutional clinical trials. As a result, much of what is known about expected outcomes and risk factors is derived from clinical trials. Clinical trials provide excellent insight into how regimens perform within the context of close monitoring, strict application of eligibility criteria and adherence to protocol therapy. However, these results may not be generalizable to children not enrolled in clinical trials. For example, observational studies have suggested that children enrolled in clinical trials differ in terms of demographic characteristics and cancer-specific features from those not enrolled. Consequently, clinical trial results may not reflect outcomes at the population level.
Abstract Full article PDF version The Daily release
Related articles
Trends in paediatric cancer survival in Canada, 1992 to 2017
- Ellison LF, Bryant H, Lockwood G, Shack L. Conditional survival analyses across cancer sites. Health Reports 2011; 22(2): 21-5.
Exposure to tobacco smoke among Canadian nonsmokers based on questionnaire and biomonitoring data
by Johanne Levesque and Trevor Mischki
Exposure to tobacco smoke has been associated with adverse health effects, and there is no risk-free level of secondhand smoke exposure (SHSe). As a result, steps are being taken to reduce the prevalence of tobacco use and SHSe.
- Date modified: