Vancouver Foundation

O N o matter how much media attention it receives, the opioid crisis is still too frequently perceived as a problem plaguing the disadvantaged. The British Columbia Centre on Substance Use (BCCSU) is trying to combat this dangerous misconception as it pursues its mission to support the development of an addiction system of care – the absence of which is contributing to the ongoing opioid overdose crisis. "The system of addiction treatment in B.C. isn't broken, because there is no system," says BCCSU Director Dr. Evan Wood. "At least, not one that is eƒective and equally accessible to all." This is compounded by the stigma associated with substance use. Marshall Smith, a senior advisor for the BCCSU working alongside Dr. Wood, explains why the stigmatizing perception of substance users is so persistent: "At one end of the spectrum you do indeed have those who are on the streets because they've reached rock bottom; and at the other end you have people wealthy enough to get the best treatment for their addictions. "But 95 percent of the substance-using population consists of people in the middle: working professionals with careers and families. They can't aƒord top-drawer treatment, and they don't qualify for the public care those at the bottom receive – until they become so sick they lose everything." As the huge gulf between the perception of people addicted to opioids and the reality implies, considerable community engagement must happen in order to bring about real change – which is why grants of $1 million and $224,000 from Vancouver Foundation to St. Paul's Foundation (the fundraising arm of St. Paul's Hospital, of which the BCCSU is a unit) were recently given for Dr. Wood's organization to support not only drug checking and clinical trials, but also engagement with those who have ˜rst-hand experience with addiction and the treatment system. BY ROBIN BRUNET | PHOTOGRAPH BY BRIAN SMITH/PHC MEDIA SERVICES OPIOID CRISIS 1 0 | V A N C O U V E R F O U N D A T I O N | 1 9 4 3 - 2 0 1 8

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