That's correct, yes.
Thank you.
Good afternoon, Mr. Chair and members of the committee.
My name is Matthew Young. I'm a senior research and policy analyst at the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction, and an adjunct research professor of psychology at Carleton University.
CCSA was created in 1988, and we are Canada's only agency with a legislated national mandate to reduce the harms of alcohol and other drugs on Canadian society.
With me today via video conference is Dr. Sheri Fandrey, knowledge exchange lead at the Addictions Foundation of Manitoba and member of the Canadian Community Epidemiology Network on Drug Use. We welcome the opportunity to speak with you today and to assist you in your study of the impacts of methamphetamine use on Canadians.
To respect your time constraints, my presentation today will be brief. Many of the statistics I refer to are included in the methamphetamine summary that was released earlier this month. It was provided to the committee in advance of today's meeting.
Methamphetamine is a synthetic drug classified as a central nervous system stimulant. The immediate effects of methamphetamine include alertness, energy and self-confidence. It is important to note these effects differ from the sedation and respiratory depression produced by opiates.
Since 2015, approximately 0.2% of Canadians report in self-report surveys using methamphetamine in the past year; however, national survey data tells only a very small part of the story. There is considerable variation across jurisdictions in rates of methamphetamine use and problematic use tends to be concentrated among populations that are unrepresented in national surveys.
Although there are gaps in the data, what data we have suggests that since about 2010 there's been an increase in the availability, use and harms associated with methamphetamine in most provinces in Canada, but mainly in the western provinces. Specifically, between 2010 and 2015, the rate per 100,000 people seeking treatment for stimulants in hospital settings increased over 600% in Manitoba, almost 800% in Alberta and almost 500% in British Columbia. During the same time frame rates of those hospitalized for poisonings in Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia doubled. Though these hospitalizations include other stimulants besides methamphetamines, data from other sources lead us to believe they are largely driven by increased harms associated with methamphetamine use.
We feel some unique considerations about methamphetamine are important to mention to the committee. In contrast to people under the influence of opioids or other depressive or sedative drugs, individuals using methamphetamine can be animated and energetic early on and feel increasingly lethargic, dysphoric, depressed and hopeless with intense craving as the drug wears off. This means that people who use methamphetamine can be challenging to treat, and when in public spaces can attract attention from the public or authorities.
In addition to public health concerns about dependence and other harms directly arising from youth, methamphetamine is sold and bought in an unregulated market. Therefore, methamphetamine can contain adulterants and contaminants that can cause health harms. There is evidence from drug-checking programs across the country that there have been samples of methamphetamine testing positive for opioids. This fact is a significant concern as overdoses are more likely among people who do not and are not expecting to use an opioid. It is challenging, however, to know how common this is or why this may be occurring. Many suspect inadvertent cross-contamination.
However, as noted, the data we have at the national level is poor and the data we have at the provincial level is often very different from province to province. As a result, not only is it difficult to accurately assess the harms associated with methamphetamine use in Canada, but it is challenging to know where to target our efforts aimed at reducing these harms.
Finally, it is important to note that methamphetamine use is a very stigmatized behaviour, not only among the general population but among service providers and people who use drugs. This stigma further increases the marginalization experienced by people who use methamphetamine and places additional barriers to those seeking and accessing help.
I'll now turn to Dr. Fandrey to speak about the impact of methamphetamine use at the community level. Sheri is a member of the Canadian Community Epidemiology Network on Drug Use, or CCENDU, led by the CCSA. CCENDU is a nationwide network of community-level partners who share information about local trends and emerging issues in substance use, and exchange knowledge and tools to support more effective interventions in data collection.