Firefighters face OD crisis

Penticton firefighters got naloxone kits in the fall, putting them at the front lines of the overdose crisis just as it hit the city.

While mostly similar to other medical calls, Captain Rae Simpson says injecting naloxone can have risks for the firefighters, as a patient can get upset their high has been taken away.

"We try to back out of the situation, say, 'Hey, we're just here for your safety, we're not ... law enforcement, we're not here to basically take that high away from you," Simpson said.

Compared to other calls, Simpson says there’s more urgency to get air to the patient in an overdose.

"If we don't administer oxygen or administer artificial ventilations to these people, basically they're not going to be able breath, therefore they're going to go into cardiac arrest."

With fentanyl in the market, Simpson says the department is seeing a broader variety of patients in overdose calls.

"We're seeing all different kind of faces, now, because fentanyl is being introduced into other drugs as well," he said. "Into marijuana, into cocaine, prescription-type drugs as well. But, yeah, we do definitely see familiar faces."

Firefighters are at a heightened risk of suffering PTSD, like any first responder, but the department has staff in place to catch it in its tracks.

"We've got, I believe eight fully-trained members in the department, now, to watch for signs and symptoms of PTSD," Simpson said. "But PTSD is just one of many of behavioural health issues."

On top of supports in the system, Simpson says firefighters support one another, both on the day-to-day and during the hard times.

"Usually at our level as co-workers, we are peer support, we do debriefings and that kind of stuff for traumatic events and guys that are showing signs of behavioural issues."

Simpson says the fire department is seeing far fewer overdoses recently than seen during the spike in early December and late November – closer to one or two per week than four or five per day, according to Simpson.

"It's a relief that we're not having to intervene on life (as often). You know, it's difficult."