The rate of unintentional overdose deaths in Bathurst more than tripled over a 10-year period as an overdose crisis has gripped regional NSW.
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Between 2013 and 2017 there were 24 unintentional overdose deaths in Bathurst, up from seven between 2003 and 2007, according to the Penington Institute report released on Tuesday.
The non-government institute identifies substance use problems and their causes.
Across the Western Primary Health Network there were 38 drug-induced deaths recorded during 2017, including 32 unintentional drug-induced deaths. In 2007 there were just 14 drug-induced deaths.
This upward trend is reflected across the wider region.
Dubbo had 32 unintentional overdose deaths between 2013 and 2017, Orange had 21 unintentional overdoses and Lithgow-Mudgee recorded 18 deaths of similar circumstances.
How does Bathurst compare to the rest of the region?
Penington Institute CEO John Ryan has called this an overdose crisis.
"On average, a person in NSW dies every 15 hours because of an unintentional overdose," he said.
"One of the main culprits has been the massive increase in the deaths due to stimulants like ice. Five years ago, unintentional deaths from overdoses of stimulants started skyrocketing - and they haven't stopped since."
There has been an increase in "polydrug" use, according to the Penington Institute, where people have overdosed on multiple types of drugs.
"We're good at treating single-drug overdoses. But when you're introducing multiple other types of drugs into a person's system, the response can be hard to predict," Mr Ryan said.
See how NSW compares to the rest of Australia
Regional NSW has been singled out as the area worst hit by the overdose crisis.
"You're twice as likely to die of an unintentional drug overdose in regional NSW today than a decade ago," Mr Ryan said.
"Ten years ago, people were more likely to die of an unintentional overdose in Sydney than regional NSW. Today that has completely turned around.
"That points to a massive failure to provide the kind of services and interventions that we know save lives.
"We can turn this around before it's too late. If we apply the methods we know are successful in reducing overdose deaths we'll save billions of dollars and, more importantly, save the lives of thousands of Australians."