The North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit reported 17.4 per cent of its population receiving opioids for pain, according to a study by the Ontario Drug Policy Research Network. It is the highest proportion of residents in the province, tied with the Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit.
The report shows that, while the number of people prescribed an opioid has plateaued over the last five years, one-in-seven, or 1.95 million Ontarians, are prescribed the addictive medications yearly.
Although the overall number of patients being prescribed opioids has decreased across the province, an alarming proportion of the population continues to be prescribed opioids in the North Bay region.
