Tara Murray
Brimbank recorded the most fatal drug overdoses in 2020, according to a new Coroners Court of Victoria report.
The Victorian Overdose deaths report for 2011 to 2020 is the first in a planned series of regular public reports on overdose deaths data from the court, aimed at supporting drug harm reduction initiatives in the community.
The court found that there were 4551 overdose deaths in Victoria between 2011 and 2020, with 526 deaths in 2020.
The highest number of deaths was recorded in 2018, with 543 overdose deaths recorded across the state, according to the report.
Over the 10 year period, there were 183 overdose deaths in Brimbank.
Only Yarra (222), Melbourne (216), Port Phillip (203) and Geelong (201) had more overdose deaths over the 10 years.
Last year, there were 28 fatal overdoses in Brimbank, the highest in the state and the highest total in Brimbank during the reporting period.
The report found that men were more likely to die of a drug overdose, accounting for about two-thirds of all deaths.
The 35 to 44 and 45 to 54 age groups were the ones with the highest number of deaths, while there were more fatal drug overdoses in metropolitan areas than rural.
The report said that pharmaceutical drugs remained the most frequent contributors to Victorian overdose deaths, playing a role in just over three-quarters of all deaths.
Of the illegal drugs, heroin played a role in the most overdose deaths each year, but the impact of methamphetamine has increased each year.
The report also indicated it was too early to tell whether the COVID-19 pandemic would have a major impact on overdose deaths, with overall overdose death frequencies presented in this data, showing little direct evidence.
IPC Health chief executive Jayne Nelson said they focused on improving quality of life for the people and communities they serve by maximising access to health and wellbeing services.
“Drug overdose is a devastating problem,” she said. “As the population grows rapidly in the west of Melbourne, there are more people in need of local community based health and wellbeing services.
“IPC Health is actively advocating for more services to be provided in the West, and in particular the need to address addiction.”
