Youth advocate urges opioid addiction strategy
Report looks at deaths of 12 teenagers
EDMONTON • The Alberta government should create a youth-specific strategy by the end of 2019 to respond to an epidemic of deadly drug use, Alberta’s child and youth advocate said.
In a review of the deaths of 12 young people who died from opioid poisoning in two years, advocate Del Graff said the support available for youth with addiction issues is inadequate, and that staff in schools, hospitals, and other public service roles missed critical opportunities to intervene as the teens’ lives spiralled out of control.
“As the provincial government responds to the opioid crisis, it is imperative that we acknowledge the unique needs of young people,” Graff states in his introduction. “The issue demands that immediate action be taken.”
On Tuesday, Graff released a report examining 12 deaths — all teenagers who died from taking painkillers like fentanyl, carfentanil and cocaine.
The teens range in age from 15 to 19, and were seven males and five females. They included athletes, artists and musicians. Their family and friends described them as bright, kind, charismatic, funny and polite. Eight were white, three were Indigenous, and one was mixed race. They died between October 2015 and September 2017.
Alberta Health counted 733 people who died from an apparent opioid overdose in 2017.
Identified in the advocate’s report by pseudonyms to protect their privacy, the teens wrestled with many common issues, such as family breakdown, mental illness, developmental disabilities, frequent moves, crime and tragedy.
Among them were two brothers, called “Gabe” and “Owen” in the report.
Their mother used drugs, and their father was accused of physical and emotional abuse. By 14, Owen faced theft and gun charges, and was the intended target of a drive-by shooting. By the time the boys were 15 and 16, police believed they were selling drugs.
At 17, Gabe was found dead in a vehicle from a suspected overdose of the potent opioid carfentanil, as well as Valium and methamphetamine. Owen, who struggled with his brother’s death, died three months later at age 16 from fentanyl, heroin, meth and cocaine poisoning.
Another teen, “Alice,” began to have panic attacks and get into trouble in school at age 12. She injured herself intentionally and began using drugs and alcohol. Her mother and stepfather successfully sought two confinement orders to force her into addiction treatment.
At age 15, she arrived in hospital after a sexual assault, where she said she had exchanged sex for money to buy drugs. Twice more, she was legally ordered into treatment.
Those stints were unsuccessful, and her parents sent her to a private addictions treatment centre for 10 months. Although she graduated from the program feeling hopeful, she relapsed three weeks later, dying at age 16.
Some teens also grappled with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, cognitive challenges and mental health problems. Many ricocheted between parents, group homes, residential treatment programs, foster care, out-ofprovince relatives and emergency shelters.
Children and their families could not get urgent help when they sought it out. Front-line workers said they didn’t have adequate space or staff to meet demand. Harm reduction services for youth, like needle exchanges or safe consumptions sites, were rare.
The teens’ stories show what a “devastating impact” opioid use can have on young people and their families, the advocate’s report says.
Youth with addictions have different needs and impulse control than adults, Graff said, which prompted him to recommend a “crossministry strategy” by senior leaders from health, education, justice, children’s services, community and social services and Alberta Health Services. The report recommends five specific initiatives:
Include age-specific substance use lessons in Alberta’s K-12 curriculum;
Train front-line public servants who deal with children to recognize signs of addiction problems and know where to refer them;
Alberta Health Services should “strengthen” substance use interventions for youth, particularly for people with cognitive disabilities or mental health issues;
Families and close friends should be better included in youth addictions treatment programs;
The government should review the legislation that allows guardians to force youth into drug treatment.
In an emailed statement, an Alberta Health Services official said staff are reviewing the advocate’s recommendations. In the meantime, the health authority is finding ways to reduce the harm caused by substance use, improve public awareness, and expand access to therapies for opioid dependency.
The health authority said it has also supported the creation of “integrated youth hubs,” such as the Access Open Minds project, which are intended to offer a welcoming environment for youth and their families to receive treatment and support.
The ministry of education said it accepts the advocate’s recommendation and will begin work immediately to strengthen addiction prevention information in the school curriculum.
In 2017, the Alberta government passed Bill 18: The Child Protection and Accountability Act, which expanded the role of the independent advocate’s office to conduct a mandatory, public review every time a young person dies who has received child intervention services within the previous two years. The mandate includes young adults up to age 20 and took effect last March. The advocate has yet to release any individual reports on specific deaths.