Ever since 2019, the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) has offered an Opioid Overdose Prevention Training twice a month due to the epidemic of opioid-caused overdoses and deaths across the nation and Rochester.
The half hour virtual training sessions begin with an introduction, then the presentation, before wrapping up with time for questions. After completing the training, participants receive free overdose prevention kits.
The training teaches participants how to identify if someone is overdosing and how to properly respond to that overdose by administering nasal naloxone, commonly sold under the brand-name NARCAN.
According to the presenter, signs of overdose are:
- unconsciousness or an inability to wake up
- slow or shallow breathing
- choking sounds or gurgling/snoring while unconscious
- blue/purple lips or fingernails
When someone is showing these signs, naloxone should be administered as quickly as possible.
Naloxone displaces the opioid from the brain receptors, which stops the effects of the overdose for sixty to ninety minutes. This allows time for a hospital to intervene.
“Naloxone displaces opiates from receptor sites in the brain, reverses the respiratory depression that usually is the cause of opioid overdose deaths, and lasts about one hour,” the presenter explained . This allows time for a hospital to intervene.
While Naloxone can be life-saving, there is still the possibility of someone continuing to overdose after the naloxone wears off, according to the presentation. Anyone who administers naloxone should also contact emergency services as quickly as possible.
After being given naloxone, someone overdosing can experience withdrawal symptoms such as disorientation and vomiting.
Naloxone does not have any harmful side effects and is safe to administer to both adults and children. Because of this, if someone is overdosing, the training recommends using naloxone even if you don’t know which drugs are the cause.
The training also warns about the dangers of fentanyl and xylazine. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is extremely addictive and fatal. According to the CDC, xylazine is a non-opioid sedative (or “tranquilizer”) and is mixed with drugs like fentanyl. Users are often unaware of the mixing. Although xylazine causes symptoms similar to opioids, naloxone does not work on xylazine-caused overdoses.
Monroe County provides a map of all naloxone boxes and a dashboard of opioid overdoses in the county.
URMC provides resources for people who are experiencing opioid addictions.