While prescription drug misuse is rising across the country, solvent abuse is still a prevalent problem, said the executive director of Ka-Na-Chi-Hih Specialized Solvent Abuse Treatment Centre.
"It’s still a big issue," said Vince Simon. "We know that because we hear about it, we see it, we have a never-ending waiting list, so we always have people that are calling and people sending in referrals to bring in people that are effected by solvents."
To ensure the issue does not end up on the back burner, the centre was the host to the first national Solvent Abuse Conference. Experts in the field from all across Canada are attending the two-day conference, which began Wednesday morning.
Ka-Na-Chi-Hih was one of several treatment centres established in the country during the late 1990s to combat the then-emerging issue of solvent abuse and while gasoline is the most commonly abused solvent, Simon said people also use a variety of household products to get high.
The people the treatment centre sees vary in age, but most are in their teens or 20s.
However, they can be as young as six and the centre has seen clients in their 60s as well.
For more information on the conference and the treatment centre visit www.kanachihih.ca.
