Article content continued

The information can be anonymous, as those filing reports will not be required to leave a name.

Right now, it can take one to two weeks for data about contaminated drugs to get to front line workers, who then pass it onto addicts. That’s because the data must be collected from the ambulance service, hospitals and injection sites, and then analyzed for signs of a bad batch of drugs.

Research organizers hope this new project will vastly speed up that process.

“We desperately need to find a better way to quickly get messages out about bad batches of drugs so that people can take added precautions and prevent overdosing,” said project co-leader Sara Young, regional leader of mental health and substance use at Vancouver Coastal.

Every time the research project produces an alert, it will also give service providers another chance to remind users of important life-saving steps such as don’t use alone, start with a small amount of any new drug, try to use inside an overdose prevention site, and make sure a naloxone kit is nearby, said Dr. Mark Lysyshyn, VCH medical health officer.

The project will be evaluated after eight months, and could be expanded.

“We’re excited about the potential of this reporting tool to help people not just in Vancouver, but also across the country,” said co-leader Dr. Jane Buxton of the B.C. Centre for Disease Control.

Between Jan. 1 and May 31 this year, 640 people in British Columbia died of illicit overdose deaths — a massive increase over the same time frame in previous years due to the presence of fentanyl in many of the drugs.

neagland@postmedia.com