Mapping the overdose crisis in Ontario: geographic disparities in opioid-related harms and services.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Opioid-related harms and deaths remain a persistent public health crisis across Ontario, Canada, with non-urban regions facing a disproportionate burden. However, discussions of opioid-related harms across Ontario's geographic regions have provided an oversimplified assessment, contrasting rural and urban regions which mask the unique challenges and true disparities faced by sparsely populated communities, which are commonly located in the Northern regions. Our study aims to provide a more in depth understanding of the opioid crisis in Ontario across different geographic classifications in accordance to population size, such as rural, urban, and sparsely populated regions, presenting data in both absolute numbers and crude rates with contextual grounding of regional char

SUBMITTER: Ali F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12616965 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature