Short Doc | Toronto Fentanyl Crisis

This was an investigation done with Toronto Health. Statistics showed us that there was a high number of emergency deaths in this specific park in Toronto. Since then, there has been a spike in fentanyl-related deaths across the country.

Fentanyl is a very potent opioid pain reliever. It is generally used in a hospital setting, and can also be prescribed by a doctor to help control severe pain. For medical purposes, it can be given in the form of:

-skin patches
-injections
-tablets

Fentanyl is a drug thats has been sold as fillers in the illegal black market because:

-it can be mixed with other drugs such as heroin and cocaine, and is also being found in counterfeit pills that are made to look like prescription opioids
-it is 20 to 40 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine, which makes the risk of accidental overdose very high
- a very small amount (about the size of a few grains of salt) of pure fentanyl is enough to kill the average adult
-it is odourless and tasteless, so you may not even know you are taking it

Here, we investigated the area that had a mass drug problem but also provided an illegal safe injection site to users. Injection sites are provided so people can safely use their drugs and get more information on how to stop.

We were provided with information from both, users and volunteer nurses and doctors about the current crisis.