Haldimand-Norfolk board of health seeks more information for drug and alcohol strategy
Alcohol use, cannabis-related emergency department visits exceeded provincial averages in 2022
After receiving some alarming substance use statistics, the Haldimand and Norfolk board of health will wait for more detailed information before moving ahead on a proposed community drug and alcohol strategy.
In a May 7 presentation by health promoter Josh Veilleux, board members learned Haldimand and Norfolk exceeded the provincial rate of emergency room visits for cannabis-related harms by 55 per cent in 2022. The region also had the province’s highest rate of emergency department visits for cannabis-related poisonings in children under 12 that year.
Provincial statistics show the region had 20 deaths directly related to opioids in 2022. Officials provided 6,500 doses of naloxone during that year, a life-saving intervention used to reverse overdoses. In 2021, the region saw 530 emergency department visits entirely attributed to alcohol, said Veilleux.
“We also stand out for being the third-highest area for self-reported current drinking rates, that being 10 per cent higher than the provincial average,” he noted.
Veilleux said Haldimand-Norfolk also has the province’s highest selfreported rate of consuming seven or more standard alcoholic beverages over the past seven days.
“Altogether these statistics are very concerning. But the last one is the most severe as this indicator represents the highest risk for the health-risk continuum that is now being used by Canada,” he said.
Board chair and Norfolk County Mayor Amy Martin was surprised to hear about the rate of cannabis poisoning in children.
“That was also quite alarming for me. I wonder if you have the actual numbers. So we’re higher, but what are the numbers? Are we higher because we have a couple extra or what’s the perspective to the actual (emergency room) visits?” she said.
While Veilleux couldn’t provide direct statistics at the meeting, he noted the figures are publicly available on the Public Health Ontario website.
Online statistics show 90 overall cases of cannabis-related poisonings in Haldimand-Norfolk in 2022, including three such cases in children 0 to 12.
When compared to the total demographic population of 16,775, the figure in children represents 1 per 5,591.
By comparison, Hamilton had 11 cannabis poisonings in children 12 and under, out of a total population of 79,688, for a rate of one poisoning per 7,244 children.
Martin sought more details to explain Haldimand-Norfolk’s higher poisoning rate and requested sale statistics for specific cannabis products, like gummies or candies, that could be ingested by children.
“I would be interested in determining what those reasons are (for Haldimand-Norfolk’s higher poisoning rate) and then putting together a campaign to request additional funding to lobby for different packaging,” she said.
The reasons for Haldimand-Norfolk’s higher rate could be multifactorial, Veilleux noted.
“I truly believe in working on both protective factors and risk factors when it comes to youth and leveraging evidence-informed programs when it comes to addressing those situations to make sure that we prevent or delay the onset of substance use entirely in our youth populations,” Veilleux added.
Board member and Norfolk Ward 2 Coun. Linda Vandendriessche questioned the alcohol use statistics presented in the report.
“I can’t believe we’re much different than anyone else, so it’s a little shocking and surprising …” she said.
Dr. Joyce Lock, medical officer of health for the Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit, said a drug and alcohol strategy could help explain why the region appears to have a higher drinking rate.
“It could be as simple as, this is the cultural norm, that it’s just become common in our small urban/rural communities to go maybe after work to have a drink or have a drink at home,” she said. “It’s been recently communicated that farmers have a lot of stress in their life and their mental health issues have long been ignored.”
Lock called the issue “multi-factorial” and said close surveillance and a multipronged approach is needed to address it.
Syed Shah, Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit director of public health, said no additional funding has been allocated for the community drug and alcohol strategy. However, the effort does include forming a committee of local health unit staff and community partners like the Ontario Provincial Police and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.
The board of health voted to receive Veilleux’s report, but take no further action pending a review of more detailed statistics from health unit staff.