{
  "id": "overdose-calls-paramedics",
  "category": "Health and safety",
  "title": "Overdose and poisoning calls paramedics attended, Victoria",
  "geography": "Victoria (BC Emergency Health Services community)",
  "scope": "city",
  "levels": [
    "Provincial (health system)",
    "People and families"
  ],
  "plain_question": "How many times in a year did paramedics respond to an overdose or drug poisoning in Victoria?",
  "value": 2282,
  "display_value": "2,282",
  "unit": "patient events, 2025",
  "period": "Calendar year 2025",
  "period_start": "2025-01-01",
  "period_end": "2025-12-31",
  "comparison": {
    "previous_period": "Calendar year 2024",
    "previous_value": 2381,
    "change_percent": -4.2
  },
  "trend": "roughly_flat",
  "direction_good": "down",
  "right_direction": "Fewer calls means fewer overdoses and poisonings that needed paramedics.",
  "trend_basis": "2,282 overdose or poisoning patient events in 2025 against 2,381 in 2024 (BC Emergency Health Services, medical dispatch card 23). Saanich 350; Esquimalt 86; Langford 189; Colwood 50; View Royal 40; Oak Bay 28.",
  "since_text": "Nearby: Saanich 350, Esquimalt 86, Langford 189, Colwood 50, View Royal 40, Oak Bay 28 in 2025.",
  "caveats": [
    "Patient events that paramedics responded to under the overdose and poisoning dispatch code (MPDS card 23), by the community BCEHS assigns to the call. They are calls, not people: one person can have several events, and an overdose where no one calls 911 is not counted.",
    "Calls depend on people calling 911, so changes in calling or in supervised consumption services can move the count.",
    "BC Emergency Health Services says the figures may be updated after review."
  ],
  "charts": [
    {
      "title": "Overdose and poisoning events paramedics attended",
      "fmt": "int",
      "unit": "events",
      "lines": [
        {
          "name": "Victoria",
          "area": "city",
          "series": [
            {
              "period": "2016",
              "value": 1149
            },
            {
              "period": "2017",
              "value": 1398
            },
            {
              "period": "2018",
              "value": 1531
            },
            {
              "period": "2019",
              "value": 1412
            },
            {
              "period": "2020",
              "value": 1569
            },
            {
              "period": "2021",
              "value": 1954
            },
            {
              "period": "2022",
              "value": 2037
            },
            {
              "period": "2023",
              "value": 2262
            },
            {
              "period": "2024",
              "value": 2381
            },
            {
              "period": "2025",
              "value": 2282
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "name": "Saanich",
          "area": "cma",
          "compare": true,
          "cmp": "Saanich",
          "series": [
            {
              "period": "2016",
              "value": 251
            },
            {
              "period": "2017",
              "value": 269
            },
            {
              "period": "2018",
              "value": 265
            },
            {
              "period": "2019",
              "value": 261
            },
            {
              "period": "2020",
              "value": 265
            },
            {
              "period": "2021",
              "value": 342
            },
            {
              "period": "2022",
              "value": 329
            },
            {
              "period": "2023",
              "value": 464
            },
            {
              "period": "2024",
              "value": 419
            },
            {
              "period": "2025",
              "value": 350
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "name": "Langford",
          "area": "cma",
          "compare": true,
          "cmp": "Langford",
          "series": [
            {
              "period": "2016",
              "value": 89
            },
            {
              "period": "2017",
              "value": 99
            },
            {
              "period": "2018",
              "value": 123
            },
            {
              "period": "2019",
              "value": 122
            },
            {
              "period": "2020",
              "value": 123
            },
            {
              "period": "2021",
              "value": 155
            },
            {
              "period": "2022",
              "value": 163
            },
            {
              "period": "2023",
              "value": 278
            },
            {
              "period": "2024",
              "value": 210
            },
            {
              "period": "2025",
              "value": 189
            }
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "series": [
    {
      "period": "2016",
      "value": 1149
    },
    {
      "period": "2017",
      "value": 1398
    },
    {
      "period": "2018",
      "value": 1531
    },
    {
      "period": "2019",
      "value": 1412
    },
    {
      "period": "2020",
      "value": 1569
    },
    {
      "period": "2021",
      "value": 1954
    },
    {
      "period": "2022",
      "value": 2037
    },
    {
      "period": "2023",
      "value": 2262
    },
    {
      "period": "2024",
      "value": 2381
    },
    {
      "period": "2025",
      "value": 2282
    }
  ],
  "refresh_frequency": "Yearly (BC Emergency Health Services)",
  "source": {
    "name": "BC Emergency Health Services, Overdose Response in B.C. Communities",
    "url": "https://www.bcehs.ca/about/accountability/data/overdose-drug-poisoning-data",
    "dataset_url": "https://www.bcehs.ca/about-site/Documents/Card-23-Top-Communities-2025-public.pdf",
    "download_url": "https://www.bcehs.ca/about-site/Documents/Card-23-Top-Communities-2025-public.pdf",
    "locator": "BCEHS, Overdose Response in BC Communities (MPDS Card 23 Events), row “Victoria”, 2016 to 2025",
    "reads": "Victoria: 2023 2,262, 2024 2,381, 2025 2,282",
    "page_url": "https://www.bcehs.ca/about-site/Documents/Card-23-Top-Communities-2025-public.pdf#page=3",
    "page": 3
  },
  "licence": {
    "name": "Public data, not under an open licence. Used with attribution.",
    "url": "https://www.phsa.ca/terms-of-use",
    "open": false
  },
  "verified_text": [
    "Victoria 1,149 1,398 1,531 1,412 1,569 1,954 2,037 2,262 2,381 2,282",
    "Victoria: 2,282 View Royal"
  ],
  "data_published": "2026-01-03",
  "retrieved_at": "2026-11-13T05:30:18Z",
  "attribution": "Source: BC Emergency Health Services, Overdose Response in B.C. Communities. Public document, used with attribution; not endorsed by the publisher.",
  "licence_type": "public",
  "source_tier": 1,
  "measure_kind": "outcome",
  "better_measure": null,
  "status_rule": {
    "rule": "One rule for every measure: a change smaller than 5% of the earlier value, or smaller than the agency's own margin of error, is “About the same”; no change is calculated across a marked break in a series; homelessness estimates, prices, staffing and comparison pages are shown for context without a label.",
    "reason": "The change is 4.2% of the earlier value, below the 5% threshold.",
    "threshold_percent": 5.0
  },
  "changes": {
    "year": {
      "period": "Calendar year 2024",
      "value": 2381,
      "text": "vs 2024: -4.2%"
    },
    "five_year": {
      "period": "2019",
      "years": 6,
      "value": 1412,
      "comparable": true,
      "text": "vs 2019: +61.6%"
    }
  },
  "direction": {
    "type": "outcome",
    "rule": "Outcome measures read Better, Worse or About the same; published government targets read Ahead of, On or Behind target; value-judgement measures read Rising, Falling or Steady in a neutral colour. A change smaller than the agency's own margin of error, or otherwise smaller than 5% of the earlier value, is About the same (or Steady). No change is calculated across a marked break in a series.",
    "key": "same",
    "label": "About the same this year. Worse over 6 years.",
    "arrow": "▼",
    "rel": -4.2,
    "delta": null,
    "vs": "Calendar year 2024",
    "cur": "Calendar year 2025",
    "why": "The change is 4.2% of the earlier value, below the 5% threshold. Over 6 years (since 2019) the change is 61.6% of the earlier value, at or above the 5% threshold, so the label also says Worse over 6 years.",
    "change": "4.2%",
    "one_year": "−4.2%",
    "five": {
      "period": "2019",
      "comparable": true,
      "rel": 61.614730878186975,
      "years": 6,
      "base_2019": true,
      "replaced": "2020",
      "text": "+61.6%"
    },
    "five_replaced": {
      "period": "2020",
      "text": "+45.4%"
    },
    "label_one_year": "About the same",
    "long_key": "worse",
    "long_label": "Worse over 6 years"
  },
  "benchmark": {
    "rung": 5,
    "rung_name": "No target found",
    "as_of": "2026-11-12",
    "items": [
      {
        "kind": "none",
        "label": "No target found",
        "text": "No target for overdose calls or overdose events found in the Ministry of Health 2026/27 to 2028/29 Service Plan (February 2026), as of November 12, 2026. Who could set one: the Province of B.C.",
        "area": "British Columbia",
        "source": {
          "title": "Ministry of Health 2026/27 to 2028/29 Service Plan",
          "publisher": "Province of B.C.",
          "date": "February 2026",
          "url": "https://www.bcbudget.gov.bc.ca/2026/sp/pdf/ministry/hlth.pdf",
          "terms": "https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/home/copyright",
          "refresh": "Yearly, with the provincial budget (February)",
          "licence": "Public document, not under an open licence. Quoted with attribution.",
          "checked": "2026-11-12",
          "key": "moh_sp"
        },
        "documents_checked": null
      },
      {
        "kind": "related",
        "label": "Related target",
        "text": "Related target, not drawn: the same plan aims for 46% of people on opioid agonist treatment to stay on it for at least 12 months in 2026/27, rising to 48% in 2028/29. It measures treatment, not overdoses.",
        "area": "British Columbia",
        "source": {
          "title": "Ministry of Health 2026/27 to 2028/29 Service Plan",
          "publisher": "Province of B.C.",
          "date": "February 2026",
          "url": "https://www.bcbudget.gov.bc.ca/2026/sp/pdf/ministry/hlth.pdf",
          "terms": "https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/home/copyright",
          "refresh": "Yearly, with the provincial budget (February)",
          "licence": "Public document, not under an open licence. Quoted with attribution.",
          "checked": "2026-11-12",
          "key": "moh_sp",
          "page": 8
        },
        "documents_checked": null
      },
      {
        "kind": "compare",
        "label": "Comparison, not a goal",
        "area": null,
        "source": null,
        "documents_checked": null,
        "text": "The Saanich and Langford lines are shown for comparison. They are not a goal."
      }
    ],
    "drawn": [],
    "rule": "Highest rung found is shown; the site never sets a target. Methods, Targets."
  },
  "benchmarks": [
    {
      "rung": 2,
      "kind": "related",
      "label": "Related target, not drawn: the same plan aims for 46% of people on opioid agonist treatment to stay on it for at least 12 months in 2026/27, rising to 48% in 2028/29. It measures treatment, not overdoses.",
      "short": null,
      "document": "moh_sp",
      "page": 8,
      "area": "British Columbia",
      "fit": "text_only",
      "same_area": false,
      "related_reason": "Different unit, definition, period or area; written under the chart, not drawn.",
      "document_url": "https://www.bcbudget.gov.bc.ca/2026/sp/pdf/ministry/hlth.pdf",
      "applies_here": false,
      "same_measure": false
    },
    {
      "rung": 4,
      "kind": "comparison",
      "label": "The Saanich and Langford lines are shown for comparison. They are not a goal.",
      "fit": "full",
      "drawn": true,
      "area": null,
      "applies_here": false,
      "same_measure": true
    }
  ],
  "highest_rung": 4,
  "no_target_found": {
    "documents_checked": [
      "moh_sp"
    ],
    "checked_on": "2026-11-12",
    "who_could_set": [
      "Province of B.C."
    ]
  },
  "decided_by": [
    {
      "body": "BC",
      "name": "Province of B.C.",
      "decides": "Sets provincial standards for health services and appoints Island Health’s board.",
      "laws": [
        {
          "key": "haa3",
          "label": "Health Authorities Act, s. 3",
          "url": "https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/96180_01#section3"
        },
        {
          "key": "haa4",
          "label": "Health Authorities Act, s. 4",
          "url": "https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/96180_01#section4"
        }
      ],
      "last": null,
      "next": null
    },
    {
      "body": "IH",
      "name": "Island Health",
      "decides": "Plans and runs health services in the region: which services, which facilities and the programs that deliver them.",
      "laws": [
        {
          "key": "haa5",
          "label": "Health Authorities Act, s. 5",
          "url": "https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/96180_01#section5"
        }
      ],
      "last": null,
      "next": null
    },
    {
      "body": "CAN",
      "name": "Government of Canada and Parliament",
      "decides": "Makes federal drug law and can exempt people, places or substances from it.",
      "laws": [
        {
          "key": "cdsa56",
          "label": "Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, s. 56",
          "url": "https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/C-38.8/FullText.html"
        }
      ],
      "last": null,
      "next": null
    }
  ],
  "main_decision_maker": "Province of B.C.",
  "label_1y": {
    "key": "same",
    "label": "About the same"
  },
  "label_long": {
    "key": "worse",
    "label": "Worse",
    "years": 6,
    "change": "+61.6%"
  },
  "target_line": {
    "form": 4,
    "text": "No target found",
    "target": null,
    "gap": null,
    "comparison": null,
    "applies_here": false,
    "note": null
  }
}