High Number of Opioid –Related Emergency Department Visits – January 5th, 2022

Date/Time/Approximate Location

January 5^th, 2022

Windsor (primarily in N9A, N8N, & N9G postal code areas) & Leamington  

Event Description

The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit’s surveillance and monitoring system has identified an increase in opioid-related Emergency Department (ED) visits and Emergency Medical Service (EMS) calls inclusively between December 28^th of 2021 and January 3^rd of 2022.

Over this consecutive seven-day period, it has been identified that there were a combined total of eight (8) opioid overdoses visits, all of which involved fentanyl, between Windsor Regional Hospital and Erie Shores Healthcare. In addition, during this time there were also ten (10) non-overdose ED visits, nine (9) of which involved fentanyl. This is a very high number on non-overdose ED visits in a short period of time. Based on this information, 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