AHS deploys neon yellow LRT trains in $700K opioid awareness campaign

Neon yellow LRT trains and bright pink posters are the latest weapons Alberta Health Serviceshas deployedin the fight against the opioidcrisis.

Enormous advertisements plastered with the words "You can't ignore opioids," and "Someone in your life could die from opioids," will begin popping upacross the province as part of a nearly $700,000 advertising campaign developed by AHS and the provincial government.

The attention-grabbing billboards and train wraps are meant to encourageAlbertansto learn aboutnaloxoneand other harm reduction measures sothey can be prepared to support friends and family who use drugs.

The billboards will be going up onLRTtrains, university campusesand more than 140 restaurants and bars in sevenmajor markets across Alberta: Calgary, Edmonton, Fort McMurray,Grande Prairie,Lethbridge,Medicine Hat andRed Deer.

"Please don't ignore this. Don't look the other way. That's what this awareness campaign is about," said Associate Minister of Health Brandy Payne.

Payne said the campaign "fightsour natural indifference," and "urges us to pay attention, because any one of us may be able to save a life."

Fentanyl overdoses were the No. 1 cause of death of men between 20 and 29 in Alberta last year, outpacing fatal car crashes and suicides, Payne said.

"None of us are immune, and every one of us, every Albertan, has the power to be part of the solution," she said.

People who want to learn more about what an overdose looks like, how to administer naloxone, or what to do if they witness an overdose in progress can visit the website for more information.

The province is also targeting recreational and habitual drug users with its advertisements, urging them not to use aloneand to take advantage of safe consumption sites oropioiddependency treatment clinics if possible.

The campaign, which includes radio and online video ads,will run until the end of March.

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