NZ Drug Foundation executive director Sarah Helm says too many New Zealanders are die from drug overdoses - but there are actions the government can take to help reduce some of the dangers Photo: Supplied/ NZ Drug Foundation
Three New Zealanders die from accidental drug overdoses every week, with the number continuing to rise, new research shows.
A new report shows that 1179 people died of an accidental overdose between 2016 and 2023.
The Drugs Overdoses in Aotearoa report was released on Saturday by the New Zealand Drug Foundation - Te Puna Whakaiti Pāmamae Kai Whakapiri, to mark International Overdose Awareness Day.
The research was heartbreaking reading, foundation executive director Sarah Helm said.
"Each of these numbers represents a person whose whānau, friend group and community has been ripped apart."
"I think New Zealanders will be appalled to see that the number of preventable overdoses in our country is continuing to increase. As a society we simply should not tolerate it.
"We've rightly spent millions of dollars to turn around our road and drowning tolls. We need to do the same for drug overdoses."
The research found some groups were affected more severely than others, including 45 to 54-year-olds, who have the highest overdose mortality rate of any age group, and Māori, who suffer a fatal overdose rate 2.4 times higher than non-Māori.
Meanwhile opioids (drugs like morphine, heroin, codeine, and fentanyl) are the biggest contributor to overdose deaths. Almost half of all fatal overdoses between 2016 and 2023 involved an opioid.
Helm said the predominance of opioids in fatal overdose statistics, along with the emerging threat of potent synthetic opioids like nitazenes, showed why increasing access to naloxone - a drug that reverses opioid overdoses - is crucial.
The foundation wants naloxone to be more widely available for at-home use.
Nyxoid, a nasal spray form of the drug naloxone, which can reverse opioid overdoses. Photo: Supplied/ NZ Drug Foundation
People can get naloxone injections at needle exchange programmes, but a nasal spray - that anyone can use - is not funded, Helm said.
"We need to get naloxone into the hands of the community - both to turn around this unacceptable number of overdoses, but also to prepare us for what's coming with nitazenes making their way into our drug supply."
A test strip for nitazenes (synthetic opioids). Photo: Supplied/ NZ Drug Foundation
Non-fatal overdose statistics also concerning - drug foundation
For the first time, the report also included data on non-fatal overdoses. It showed hospitalisations for drug poisonings had steadily declined during the past five years.
The fact that this had not been matched by a decrease in fatal overdoses was a concern, Helm said.
"It could be due to high potency opioids in the illicit market increasing the likelihood of death and decreasing the likelihood that someone makes it to hospital.
"It could also show that people aren't seeking help when they need to."
It also pointed to the need for a Good Samaritan law that would legally protect people who seek help for themselves or someone else who is overdosing, she said.
"[It] is a straightforward way we can encourage people to get the help they need."
Holly Beckham has dealt with addiction. She previously overdosed on tramadol, an opioid she was prescribed for years, after surgery.
International Overdose Awareness Day was a good chance to raise awareness of prescription opioids, like morphine, codeine, and fentanyl.
"Just talking about it. Having a kōrero around drugs and prescribed drugs. The more we can talk about it and bring it out of the darkness and into the light, the more we can normalise it and educate people about it, Beckham said.
Helm said the awareness day was "incredibly important" to reduce the stigma about overdosing: "Anyone can die from an overdose."
Beckham agreed, but said people could be quite quick to judge.
"It's quite heartbreaking, you wake up, and you've got that judgement upon you straight away. All I wanted was someone to help me and to listen. Just someone to ask to why, why are you doing this - that's all I really needed."
But she said she'd also had "lots of great help from hospitals and medical professionals".
Drug testing a safety guard
It was also important for recreational and occasional drug users to get their substances tested.
Last year, one man (who asked not to be named) said he took a small test dose of what he thought to be the psychedelic drug DMT, which turned out to be a synthetic cannabinoid.
"My girlfriend watched me collapse, vomit and turn blue, all within about a minute... Upon waking up I was told by doctors that my heart had stopped repeatedly and I had had about four seizures in the ambulance."
He urged people to get their drugs tested: "I am not an addict ... This can happen to anyone, no matter how casual a drug user you are.
"If you cannot test the substances yourself, find someone trusted to take them in for you.
"Also do not use alone. If I were alone during this experience I would not be here today."
A technician using equipment to carry out a drug check, at the NZ Drug Foundation clinic. Photo: Supplied/ NZ Drug Foundation
The Drug Foundation's recommendations
The Drug Foundation has recommended a full Overdose Prevention Plan, which it wants the government to adopt.
Including:
- Establish an effective overdose surveillance system
- Pilot an overdose prevention centre in Auckland
- Trial a non-fatal overdose response service to support people who have overdosed and prevent further harm or death
- Expand opioid substitution therapy
- Develop a nation-wide naloxone distribution scheme
- Establish a 'Good Samaritan' law to legally protect people who seek help for someone who is overdosing
- Expand harm reduction programmes
Key findings from the report:
- Between 2016 and 2023, 1179 people died from an accidental drug overdose
- Of these cases, 516 involved an opioid
- Whether or not it was the cause of death, 35.4 percent of fatal overdoses involved alcohol
- 65.2 percent of those who died were male
- Over two thirds of fatal overdoses involved at least one medicine (in cases where the coronial process is completed)
- Most fatal overdoses involved more than one substance: more than half of all fatal overdoses involved four or more substances and 43.9 percent involved five or more (in cases where the coronial process is completed)
- Māori suffer a fatal overdose rate 2.4 times higher than non-Māori
- 15-24-year-olds had the highest rate of hospitalisation for drug poisoning
A community event was planned to mark International Overdose Awareness Day, at Whakarei in Karangahape Road, Auckland, from 3pm to 7pm on Saturday.