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Learn to prevent overdose at session with POWW! by David Lea Oakville Beaver Staff 5 | Friday, May 13, 2016 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com The Halton Equitable Drug Strategy is partnering with the Mississauga Halton Local Health Integration Network (LHIN) to hold an overdose prevention event Thursday (May 19). The free event, being held at the Queen Elizabeth Park Community and Cultural Centre (QEPCCC) from 6-9:30 p.m., will feature a presentation by Preventing Overdose Waterloo Wellington (POWW). The presentation will feature speakers with lived experience in the area of overdose. They will discuss topics such as: the relationship between mind-altering substances and the central nervous system; contributing factors that can increase the risk of an overdose; practical, evidence-based harm reduction techniques; common myths about accidental overdoses; how to identify the signs and symptoms of an overdose; and overdose responses that will keep both the witness and victim safe and alive. "We know we will have community professionals there, but we are really hoping to have people from the community there as well to hear this information," said Angus CollSmith, manager of the Halton Equitable Drug Strategy, a municipal partnership that seeks to reduce harm caused by substance abuse. "Overdose is something that is not often talked about... We're not at the point of some communities, which are declaring public health emergencies because of the number of overdoses taking place, but we don't want to wait until we are at that point. Education lies at the heart of a lot of this stuff so that's why we are holding this event." Coll-Smith is hoping the presentation will draw not just people who have addiction issues, but parents as well as people who must regularly take strong pain medication. The information they learn at the event may save someone's life, he noted. "When it comes to drug overdose, people still tend to think of somebody with a needle in their arm in a back alley somewhere and the reality is that's not the case," said Coll-Smith. "It's young suburban people. Recently, you have that young couple in British Columbia who both overdosed. Nobody thought of them as drug addicts. They were a young couple. They had a child and they both did (a drug) one weekend and they overdosed and died," he said. He said it is also important to note that the majority of people who are accessing methadone services in Halton are not heroin addicts, but rather people who got addicted to pain medication that was prescribed to them by their doctor at one point and who now cannot get off it. Halton Equitable Drug Strategy co-chair Betty-Lou Kristy, who lost her 25-year-old son Pete to an accidental Oxycontin overdose in 2001, said events like these are important for preventing drug overdoses as well as for raising awareness and promoting early intervention. "Not only could something like this have reached Pete, but it could have reached me as a mother," she said. "I have been in recovery for 17 years from alcohol and drug addiction. I was looking for signs of street drugs in Pete, not even thinking about something he was prescribed by a doctor for a genuine pain issue." Coll-Smith said the issue of overdose is now compounded with the arrival of illicit fentanyl on the drug scene, which is being passed off as Oxycontin, but is far stronger and easier to overdose on. Seating at the event is limited so those who plan on attending area asked to register at Eventbrite- https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/powwoverdose-prevention-community-trainingtickets-24020086726. For more information, email mhlhin. education@shhalton.org. The QEPCCC is located at 2302 Bridge Rd. Thinking of Retiring... Someday? Let's Talk. A STEP BEYOND IN CARE Salima Kassam Reg. Chiropodist Visit our website to sign up for a free consultation. Peter Watson MBA, CFP, R.F.P., CIM, FCSI Jennifer Watson B.A. 220 Randall Street, Downtown Oakville 905-842-2100 peterwatsoninvestments.com · Foot/Arch Pain? · Ingrown Toenails? · Diabetes? · Swollen Ankles? · Corns, Calluses? Do you have: Call for an appointment 905-632-1414 728 Burloak Drive www.footandhealthclinic.com