Re: Inquest jury recommends how to prevent future deaths after UVic overdose.
While it is absolutely appropriate to examine and upgrade safety procedures in the wake of this tragedy, there are two crucial points missing from the list of 10 recommendations, and indeed from the discussion so far – two that should be at the top of the list.
Point one: personal responsibility. These young women were considered old enough, mature enough, and intelligent enough to be living independently at a major university. They are neither children nor addicts, and their “exposure” to fentanyl was apparently not inadvertent, but a personal choice – no one slipped it into their drinks at a party.
They cannot have been unaware that they were playing with fire.
Point two: zero tolerance for users and sellers, at the family level, especially at the institutional level (UVic in this case), and at our level – society at large.
The current message seems to be that recreational use of these substances is an acceptable, normal rite of passage, and can be safely indulged, since if things go wrong, it will be someone else’s responsibility to save your life. That attitude is obviously flawed and can be fatal.
Tough love.
Karen Nelson
Victoria
