Date/Time/Approximate Location |
Tuesday, June 28th, 2022 Windsor & Essex County |
Event Description |
The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit’s surveillance and monitoring system has identified an increase in the number of opioid-related Emergency Department (ED) visits and substance use-related Emergency Medical Service (EMS) calls inclusively between June 20th and June 26th of 2022. Over this seven-day consecutive period, there were a total of nine (9) opioid overdoses reported by Windsor Regional Hospital and Erie Shores Healthcare combined, seven (7) of which involved fentanyl. In addition, there were (2) fentanyl non-overdoses reported during this same time period. These values are two standard deviations above our five-year historical average, as well as three standard deviations above the two-year historical average for the current week in question. Alongside the ED visits, the system also identified three consecutive days of substance use-related EMS calls over this timeframe. As such, based on the information available, a public alert is warranted. Partners involved in the WECOSS, including the WECHU, Windsor Regional Hospital, Essex Windsor-EMS, Erie Shores Healthcare, and Police Services, continue to monitor this increase and are working to understand more about these reported cases. |
Response |
Please share this information with clients and relevant partners. If you are aware of any linkages between these cases or other causes for these increases, please contact the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit. For signs and symptoms of opioid overdose and what to do, visit the WECOSS website: How Can Overdose Be Prevented? |
Source |
WECHU (Acute Care Enhanced Surveillance Application - ACES), Essex-Windsor EMS Overdose Notification System, Windsor Police Services |
Windsor-Essex County