Health committee  Well, I can give you a very concrete example from Projet Caméléon, a non-profit I started in 2017 at the beginning of the opioid crisis. Projet Caméléon sends a team of doctors, pharmacists, nurses, medical students, volunteers and outreach workers to electronic music festivals, where almost 95% of people are under the influence of drugs.

Health committee  Can you repeat the beginning of the question? I think it's similar to what I said to Madame Brière.

Health committee  I can try in English. I opened my own clinic in 2015 in Montreal dedicated only to addiction. I had to close the clinic in 2020 because the provincial government told me it was not a priority. The priority was COVID at that moment, so I had to close my clinic. The name of the clinic was Clinique Caméléon, like the animal, the chameleon.

Health committee  That's the big question, the chicken or the egg. Everyone is asking that question. Let's start by putting things in perspective. There are two types of mental health issues related to drugs. One is the presence of comorbidities and self-medication. The most common example is alcohol use in response to anxiety disorders.

Health committee  People are chasing the buzz. Remember, people use for two reasons: to increase pleasure or to relieve suffering. It's rarely for both reasons at the same time. We learn a lot from peers. When I go to conferences, I bring a person in their twenties who has come out the other side.

Health committee  In all humility, I've been working on prevention in schools since 2005. Earlier, someone asked when we should start talking to kids about these issues. If conversations about drugs and sex haven't happened by the time a kid is 12, I think that's the right time to start. Those conversations need to start in grade 7.

Health committee  That's absolutely true, but it may have been truer 25 years ago, because there were far fewer drugs, and the drugs on the market were good quality. It's sad but true. Today, there are more drugs, more kinds of drugs and contaminated drugs. Young people also mix substances. I don't know a lot of addicts who use only one drug.

Health committee  People are using everywhere, you know, even in public washrooms. I think backtracking would be tough. I don't want to be pessimistic, but the doors have been opened, and it'll be very hard to close them. I don't know how we're going to do it. Personally, I think we'll need more social workers, outreach workers, psychologists and addictions workers to direct people with substance use problems to mental health or psychiatric care.

Health committee  What a great question. Thank you. I could go on for three hours. First, it's important to make some things clear. Treating people with addictions involves a continuum of care. Harm reduction is part of that continuum, but it's not the be-all and end-all. It's one step. Treating comorbidities is at the other end of the continuum.

Health committee  Good afternoon to the committee members and the other experts on the panel. I want to start by thanking the committee for having me today. It's a privilege to be able to share my perspective on addiction and mental health issues among young people. The committee's study is timely.