Abstract
Objective
This paper aims to present the rates of drug-related hospital separations for amphetamines, alcohol, cocaine, cannabis and opioids for each province from fiscal years 1996 to 2005.
Method
Data were drawn from Canada’s Hospital Morbidity Database, a national electronic archive of all inpatient hospital admission records. All inpatient medical records with an alcohol- or drug-related diagnosis were abstracted for this study.
Results
Canadian rates increased during the 10-year period for all drugs; however, alcohol separations declined somewhat. The highest rates of drug and alcohol separations were most often found in BC, Alberta and the North. Nova Scotia and Newfoundland generally had the lowest rates of separations.
Conclusion
The study provides a detailed provincial and national account of alcohol- and drug-related morbidity related to inpatient hospital admissions. The rates of alcohol-related admissions across all provinces were, by far, much greater than those associated with drug-related episodes. The data provide an important measure of the harms related to substance use in Canada.
Résumé
Objectif
Présenter les taux de diagnostics-congés liés aux drogues (amphétamines, alcool, cocaïne, cannabis et opioïdes) dans chaque province pour les exercices financiers de 1996 à 2005.
Méthode
Les données sont tirées de la Base de données sur la morbidité hospitalière du Canada, un fichier électronique pancanadien où sont archivés tous les dossiers d’hospitalisation. Pour cette étude, nous en avons extrait les dossiers médicaux d’hospitalisation comportant un diagnostic lié à l’alcool ou à la drogue.
Résultats
Les taux au Canada ont augmenté pour toutes les drogues au cours de la période de référence de 10 ans, mais les taux de congés liés à l’alcool ont légèrement diminué. Les taux les plus élevés de congés liés à la drogue et à l’alcool ont été observés le plus souvent en Colombie-Britannique, en Alberta et dans le Nord. La Nouvelle-Écosse et Terre-Neuve présentaient en général les taux les plus faibles.
Conclusion
L’étude brosse un portrait provincial et national détaillé de la morbidité liée à l’alcool et à la drogue selon les dossiers d’hospitalisation. Dans toutes les provinces, les taux d’hospitalisation liés à l’alcool étaient de très loin supérieurs aux taux liés à la drogue. Ces données sont un important outil de mesure des méfaits de la consommation d’alcool ou de drogue au Canada.
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Acknowledgements: A number of students helped to prepare and format this manuscript: Judith Wiedman, Roberto Gonzalez Lazo, and Matt Boire. We thank them for their hard work and dedication to scholarship.
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Callaghan, R.C., Macdonald, S.A. Changes in the Rates of Alcohol- and Drug-related Hospital Separations for Canadian Provinces: 1996 to 2005. Can J Public Health 100, 393–396 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03405278
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03405278