The executive director of an organization serving youth in the Tri-Cities is concerned that outrage over the overdose death last week of a 16-year-old Coquitlam girl will dissipate without anything being done to prevent future losses of life.
Jerome Bouvier said concerns over designer drugs have come and gone over the years but resources for young people have not increased to keep up with the population.
At the same time, he told The Tri-City News, youth are becoming increasingly more isolated from trustworthy adults because they spend so much time on their smartphones.
"The point being is that drug use isn't going anywhere, [drug pushers] are just getting more creative with kids," said Bouvier, of Access Youth Outreach Services. "And kids have less to do, they're more stuck in the media age, they're not connected into the family anymore."
Bouvier said he was saddened to learn of the death of Gwynevere Staddon, who overdosed in the washroom of a Port Moody Starbucks on Aug. 7.
But he said the only way to protect youth is for everyone in the community — parents, politicians, community workers and neighbours — to do something to help, whether it be finding resources or taking time to engage local teens.
Youths who are engaged with their community are much less likely to do drugs, Bouvier said, but those who struggle with mental health concerns are vulnerable and are easily preyed upon by drug dealers.
"You've got kids having to make adult decisions, and it's hard to do. "Where do you fit in? Who do I hang out with?"
Bouvier said he doesn't think it is useful to point fingers of blame at any single government but he said he believes cities could do more because they are allowing more development — which means more people — and collecting more in taxes without increasing social services.
He's also concerned that while detox services are available for youth who need them, getting space in a rehabilitation facility is harder to do.
"You can get detox very quickly but then you've got five, six months to sit around and go nuts."
He would like to see more resources for programs such as Access, which supports at-risk youth and operates a bus that meets up with teens in local parks and helps them with their issues. He also thinks a shelter for homeless youth is needed.
But he admitted that solving the problem of youth drug use is not "an easy fix."
And while fentanyl is a concern now, and believed responsible for a spike in drug overdose deaths, Xanax, a prescription drug used to treat anxiety disorders, is more widely seen in this area.
Still , he said Access will be producing an information card on fentanyl, that will soon be made available on its website, www.accessyouth.org.
