An interview with Dr. Nicholas Chadi, Canadian Paediatric Society, December 16, 2024
**Available in English and French / Disponible en anglais et francais**
In 2022, a one-time CPSP survey exposed an increasing rate of exposure to opioids, sedatives, and stimulants in youth 12-18 years old. The same team—led by Drs. Matthew Carwana, Nicholas Chadi, and Eva Moore—has recently launched a multi-year study to better understand the trends of this crisis and to identify knowledge gaps for the health care providers treating these young people. We sat down with co-Principal Investigator Dr. Nicholas Chadi, for more information.
[This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity]
CPS: This 3-year study follows from a one-time survey. What were the most striking results from that survey and what led to this longer-term study?
NC: We’ve seen a worrisome trend over the past few years. Since 2022, overdose deaths are the main cause of mortality among adolescents in Western Canada. And this is a phenomenon that evolved quickly, just from the beginning of the pandemic. This led to the first cross-sectional survey. The most striking finding to me was that 14 per cent of respondents reported having seen at least one young person with a severe and acute event related to the use of an opioid, sedative, or stimulant substance in the past two years.
That seemed quite high and meant that paediatricians do intersect frequently with young people with these issues. It also correlates with the national data that we are seeing: an increase in overdose deaths related to illicit drugs. Given these findings, our group was interested in continuing the investigations and learning more about the characteristics of young people who present in situations related to the use of sedatives, stimulants, and opioids, as well as what treatment they received. (Read more – English version) (Entrevue complète en français)
Nicholas Chadi MD MPH 
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