Almost one quarter of Canadians hospitalized for opioid poisoning are seniors, according to a new report.
The latest numbers come from a joint report from the Canadian Institute for Health Information and the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse.
A study of hospitalizations over the past eight years shows that while seniors only represent 16 per cent of the population, people over the age of 65 account for nearly one quarter of opioid poisonings.
"We were surprised by it ... I certainly didn't expect it to be that high," says Michael Gaucher, director of pharmaceuticals and health workforce information services at the Canadian Institute for Health Information.
Gaucher says more than half of the opioid poisonings among seniors were deemed accidental.
"It's definitely cause for concern. When you look at it, a lot of these are potentially preventable," says Gaucher.
Gaucher says seniors are more likely to have prescriptions for opioids because of pain or chronic illness and are more at risk because they often take multiple medication.
The report found that in 2014-2015 4,779 people across Canada – or 13 a day on average – were hospitalized or taken to the emergency department because of an opioid overdose.