The Medical Officer of Health for Windsor-Essex is concerned with the number of drug overdoses in the region.
Dr. Wajid Ahmed says the Windsor-Essex Community Opioid and Substance Strategy has already issued seven drug-related alerts this year, compared to three alerts in 2020 and nine alerts in 2019.
Dr. Ahmed believes there is a connection between the COVID-19 pandemic and the drug overdoses.
"There is definitely the connection as everyone is impacted by the pandemic," says Dr. Ahmed. "This particular group is getting most of the impact and it is a troubling trend."
He says a lot of work is being done by Windsor-Essex Community Opioid and Substance Strategy and its partners to address the situation.
"Many partners are stepping up to take care of this vulnerable group, developing some pathways, developing some of these connections to offer services," says Dr. Ahmed. "So yes, there is that connection and we hope that we can address some of these issues through our partnerships and the available resources and look for additional resources as needed."
Since April 28, the Windsor-Essex Community Opioid and Substance Strategy has issued three local drug-related alerts.
Back in 2019, three alerts were issued in May and three alerts were issued in November.