Northern B.C. First Nations say they need more resources to deal with the illicit drug crisis

Members of B.C.'s most northern communities are saying they need more resources to deal with the impacts of the province's drug crisis, at a forum in Prince George, B.C., this week.

More than 200 First Nations leaders and health-care workers met to talk about harm reduction, treatment centres, resources, land-based healing and best practices for dealing with addiction, at the three-day First Nations Health Authority's Northern Addictions and Engagement and Knowledge Exchange Forum.

First Nations people are dying at a rate five times higher than the general B.C. population from illicit drug toxicity, according to the First Nations Health Authority. But communities north of Prince George and south of the Yukon border say it is hard to make progress on the drug crisis when there is little health infrastructure to begin with.

"We need everything," said Pamela Moon, the wellness director for Dease River First Nation.

"We're just at the bottom of the barrel for B.C. ... We have absolutely nothing."

Out of Dease River's 186 band members about 39 people live in Good Hope Lake, about 700 kilometres northeast of Prince George. Despite the community's small size and remoteness, Moon said drugs are "rampant" in the area.

Moon, who is Kaska Dena from Liard First Nation, said over the years harder drugs started making it up north, and she now hears of drugs like heroin and meth in small communities.

"Absolutely, people are dying from it," said Moon.

Moon said Dease River First Nation has no drug and alcohol workers, no doctors or nurses available, just her team that has to send people hundreds of kilometres to places like Prince George to enter addictions treatment programs.

14-hour drive to services

Richard Jackson, who is Tahltan from Telegraph Creek, said the distance for treatment is a barrier — like a 14-hour drive to the nearest urban centre to access services.

Telegraph Creek has a population of about 400 residents according to the Tahltan Band, and is about 700 kilometres north of Prince George. Jackson said its isolation is no longer protecting it from the illicit drug crisis.

"Sometimes you're kind of forgotten about in a way, because it seems like we're doing well on our own because we have to," said Jackson.

Jackson said he would like to see the First Nations Health Authority bring more services to his area so people don't have to travel as far.

Jennifer Hearn, the wellness manager for the Taku River Tlingit First Nation in Atlin, B.C., said there needs to be support in place for people who leave their community for treatment, such as medical escorts, but also when people return home.

"I'm going to leave you at an airport to now fly back to the community alone, fresh out of treatment with 150,000 questions in your head about how this is going to play out," said Hearn, who is Mohawk.

Atlin has a population of 424 people but has no road connecting the hamlet to any other communities in B.C., only Yukon.

Hearn said the community still faces more challenges with alcohol than drugs but wants more information on harm reduction. She said she thinks the money spent bringing community representatives to the forum in Prince George might have been better spent in communities.

"We're all saying we want to make a difference, then conferences should include like half a day of service work where we're going into the community and let's go make a difference," said Hearn.