The COVID-19 pandemic has had far-reaching impacts on public health in Canada, including substance use and access to healthcare services and supports.
CCSA’s new webinar series explores the implications of COVID-19 on public health, highlighting work in the area of substance use and COVID-19 across sectors and across the country. You can expect to hear a variety of perspectives from leading experts spanning topics from harm reduction, stigma, domestic violence, adverse childhood events, and youth. Past webinars include:
Guiding Youth Through COVID-19: A Webinar for Youth Allies
This webinar, delivered in partnership with Alberta Health Services, explored the experiences of youth during COVID-19. Topics covered included the implications for substance use and mental health, mental health literacy, guidance for providing youth with mental health support and harm reduction messaging during the pandemic and beyond. This webinar was intended for parents, teachers, coaches, counsellors, healthcare professionals and anyone in a position to support and nurture open discussions with youth about substance use and mental health.
Speakers:
Anna Goodman, Research and Policy Analyst, CCSA
Andrew Baxter, Project Lead for the Alberta Mental Health Literacy Project, Alberta Health Serviceshttps://www.youtube.com/embed/oIp9e_icr3Q?version=3&rel=1&fs=1&autohide=2&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&wmode=transparent
Download the French translation
COVID-19 and Alcohol
How much are people drinking while staying at home during the COVID-19 pandemic? Are Canadians drinking more alcohol than usual and, if so, are they doing it more often? This webinar explored alcohol use during the pandemic, drawing on the results of a survey and polls commissioned by CCSA in spring 2020. The presentation highlighted resources to assist in reducing risks related to alcohol use during COVID-19.
Speakers:
- Dr. Catherine Paradis, Senior Research and Policy Analyst, Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction
- Dr. Bryce Barker, Knowledge Broker, Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction
Rapid Access to Addiction Medicine and Withdrawal Options
Addiction… haunted by stigma, harms and trauma. This webinar explored underlying issues with substance use disorders and helped attendees to understand their complexity and treatment from an evidence-based lens. It also focused on the impacts of COVID-19, withdrawal considerations and advancements in delivery of care during these uncertain times, including the Rapid Access to Addiction Medicine model.
Speaker: Dr. Ginette Poulin, Medical Director, Addictions Foundation of Manitobahttps://www.youtube.com/embed/xfKnyTdHqQM?version=3&rel=1&fs=1&autohide=2&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&wmode=transparent
The Effects of COVID-19 on the Illegal Drug Supply
This webinar explored how regulations put in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19 are inadvertently contributing to an increasingly toxic illegal drug supply and how this shift has both increased health harms and created policy opportunities. Presentations highlighted different perspectives, including systems-level epidemiology data, findings from a local drug checking program and experiences shared by people who use drugs.
Speakers:
- Dr. Jane Buxton, Physician Epidemiologist and Harm Reduction Lead, BC Centre for Disease Control
- Karen McDonald, Operations Manager, Centre on Drug Policy Evaluation
- Matthew Bonn, Safe Supply and Drug Policy Consultant, Canadian Association of People who Use Drugs
For more information on the webinar series, please click here.
Retrieved from https://preventionconversation.org/2020/08/20/canadian-centre-on-substance-use-and-addiction-implications-of-covid-19-webinar-series/
