A doctor at a local inner city health centre estimates 80 per cent of her patients use crystal meth.
The harmful drug has become more common in Edmonton streets over the past five years. In 2013, Edmonton police seized 9,017 grams crystal meth.
That number has more than tripled since.
In 2017, police seized 33,112 grams, and so far this year, the number is nearly at 30,000.
“We definitely have a lot of meth use in this community and it’s a big deal,” said Dr. Tally Mogus, a family physician at the Boyle McCauley Health Centre.
A woman who goes by Kim is one of those meth users. She showed CTV News about $10 worth of crystal meth. Kim says it’s cheap—that amount lasts her a day—and easy to buy.
Alberta Health Services (AHS) has seen an increase in patients that use meth, but does not consider it an epidemic.
“I don’t think we’re seeing that level of use that would meet the criteria,” said Barry Andres, executive director at Provincial Addiction and Mental Health. “That is in no way to minimize the concern.”
But there is an opioids epidemic, and there have been cases of meth laced with fentanyl.
“So we started to give out naloxone kits as well to people using meth; whereas before, we just gave them to people using opiates,” Mogus said.
There is no medication for meth and the detox rooms in Edmonton are full, but Kim has not given up on an addiction-free future.
“I do have hopes of coming clean,” Kim said.
With files from Dan Grummett
