Vancouver Island Construction workers add overdose treatment to tool kits

Vancouver Island's construction industry wrapped up a series of workshops this week that taught workers about how to savecolleagues and others froman opioid overdose.

The workshops In Victoria andNanaimofollowed recent reports of higher rates of overdose deaths among the construction trades in the U.S. and Canada.

"I have had first hand reports of tradespeople who have died," Rory Kulmala. the CEO, of the Vancouver Island Construction Association, told On the Island host Gregor Craigie.

However, Kulmala said, said therehave not been anyoverdoses on construction sites on Vancouver Island.

"It happens in the home and in those areas after work," he said. "It happens after a party."

Kulmala disputes suggestions that construction workers in particular are at higher risk of opioid use and overdose than those in other sectors.

Hehe said they are vulnerable because theymatch the demographic groupsmost likely to die from illicit drug use.

According to recent statistics from the BCCoroners Service, 83 per cent of fatal overdose victims are male, and 75per cent are aged 30 to 59.

The construction industry employsnearly one million people in B.C.,Kulmalasaid.

"I'm not sure it's a construction issue at all, I think it's a social issue," he said.

"As an organization that looks after the interests of its members, we thought it would be a good idea to do our part to promote some education and awareness around the issue."

The workshops, provided in partnership with Island Health, provided a basic overview of theopioidepidemic along with instruction onhow to identify and respond to an overdose.

'I learned you can help'

Naloxonekits were provided for reversingoverdoses, along with training on how to use them.

The construction association published comments fromparticipants in the earlier workshops.

"I learned that you can help and save lives," one participant wrote.

"I learned that the most harm is for prescription users," another said.